Back To Good
by KS4EVA
Summary: *Sequel to Where Love Lies* Hunter will do whatever it takes to get Stephanie back but is it too late? Will Hunter's life ever get back to good? Chp 64 up! Please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Notes: This fic is the sequel to the story Where Love Lies. Events in this story may refer back to events that took place in Where Love Lies.**

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter One

"It's my birthday Mommy!" Aurora exclaimed. Her little nose scrunched up as she smiled wide.

It was her third birthday party which was being held in the backyard of Stephanie and Kurt's home in Greenwich. The party was somewhat extravagant with a clown, petting zoo animals, and even Haflinger ponies for Aurora, her cousins, and the children of fellow WWE superstars to ride. Kurt had requested that Karen allow him to have his two children for the weekend so that they could come to Aurora's birthday party but the former Mrs. Angle refused to allow Kyra and Kody to come. She was still very bitter; especially after Kurt married Stephanie last year. In Karen's mind, Steph was a home wrecker who had betrayed her friendship and slept with her husband.

"Yes it is sweetheart! This is your special day, birthday girl!" Stephanie replied beaming with pride at her three year old daughter before she ran her hand through the little girls light brown locks of hair.

"Look baby brother, see my cake?" Aurora asked her eleven month old half brother, Andrew Vincent, as he sat on Stephanie's hip. She was pointing at her elaborate Dora the Explorer birthday cake with three candles sunken into the white cream icing. A few lines of gibberish escaped baby Andy's wet mouth as he smiled at his older sister causing his mother to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"Honey, are we getting ready to start soon?" Kurt asked coming up behind his wife. His hands he placed on her hips as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"We need to wait a little longer. Paul still hasn't shown up. I don't think he wants to miss seeing Aurora blow out her three candles. Where the hell is he?" Steph whispered, turning her head to her husband so that her daughter would not hear her through all the birthday party noise and festivities.

"Hey Aurora, how about we get an action shot of you on a pony. Come on I'll give you a piggyback over there." Kurt said with a smile as he leaned down to where Aurora was standing on the chair in front of her cake.

"Okay!" Aurora said with a large smile before she hopped onto Kurt's back. He quickly grabbed hold of her legs, holding her in place before he turned to face his wife again.

"Do you need me to take him too?" Kurt offered looking at his son who began to squirm a bit in his mother's arms.

"No, he's acting like this because he's hungry. I'm going to feed him. You and Aurora go have fun." Steph replied before giving Angle a quick peck on the lips and then walked away with the baby.

Paul Levesque slowly stepped out of his Hummer that he had parked in the driveway behind the number of cars that were already there. Paul stopped for a moment, taking in the grand view of the Angle home. The large home looked very much like the house he and Stephanie had shared. It was obvious that Stephanie had picked out this house too. He knew the style of homes that she preferred.

Levesque had made it a point never to visit the home in the past year. He would pick Aurora up at whatever arena the Angles happen to be at. It wasn't always easy to do so because he had continued his stay on the SmackDown roster despite his requests to be moved to RAW. Vince's excuse had to do with Kurt Angle. Angle had finally come back to wrestle in WWE a month ago and McMahon wanted him on RAW. According to Vince, Kurt Angle and Triple H shouldn't be on the same show. How did that make any sense? It was bullshit. This was the McMahon-Angle family's way of keeping him from seeing his daughter Aurora.

Paul walked up the three stone steps before approaching the front door. With some hesitation, he lifted his hand and rang the door bell. As he waited for a response, Levesque began to mentally prepare himself for what he was going to have to be subjected to. He was going to see Stephanie on the other side of that door. Paul knew she was going to look just as beautiful as when they were married. That's what was so hard for him to take. The fact that he was going to see her new wedding ring on her left hand; exactly where the wedding ring that he had bought for her used to be. There was even the possibility that she would be answering the door with her and Angle's baby in her arms. The son that at one time he believed was his. He didn't know if he was going to be able to handle this. Just when he was contemplating making a run for it, the front door opened.

"Hello Paul."

Levesque let out a sigh of relief when he saw that it was not Stephanie who answered the door but her mother, Linda. Despite the fact that Paul was no longer married into the McMahon family, Linda McMahon still treated him fairly unlike her husband.

"Hi Linda, I'm sorry I'm late. Where's Aurora?" Paul asked with a polite smile.

"Everyone's in the backyard. Kurt and Stephanie put on quite a birthday party for your daughter. Come on inside, I lead you through the house to the French doors to the backyard." Linda offered stepping away from the door entrance to allow her former son-in-law to enter.

"No that's okay. I'll just go around the back." He replied moving away from the front door and back down the stone steps.

Levesque left Linda standing at the doorway and quickly made his way around the house. It was a bit of a long walk because the house had a large amount of square footage. When he made it to the backside of the home he saw the fan fair that was his daughter's birthday party. He took a moment to scan the sea of people that populated the back yard. When his eyes fell on his ex-wife sitting at the main tables set up on the lawn, Paul quickly made his way over to her. He wasn't even thinking. Something inside of him made him go over to her. As soon as his eyes casted upon her, he was drawn to her like a magnet.

"Hey Steph…" Paul heard himself instinctively say aloud once he reached his ex-wife.

"Where have you been? You're an hour late. We've been holding off singing happy birthday to Aurora." Stephanie quickly replied the moment she heard and saw her ex-husband standing before her. She was sitting in one of the folding chairs with a light baby blanket draped over her infant's head and her bosom.

"It couldn't be helped. I had an appearance in New York earlier this morning, I drove straight from there." Paul explained.

"Well whatever appearance you were making in New York, which is none of my business by the way, thank God, I hope it was worth being an hour late to your daughter's third birthday party." Steph replied not even looking up at Paul while she tending to her nursing baby.

"Spare me the guilt trip, Steph. You know I love Aurora more than anything. Isn't that kid almost a year old? You're still breast feeding him?" Levesque asked completely changing the subject.

"I'm weaning him off slowly. He prefers breastfeeding a lot more than Aurora did at this age. I'm just trying to offer it to him less." Stephanie explained as she quickly fixed herself back into her shirt before removing the blanket and sitting the baby up to burp him.

"He's a little homely looking, isn't he?" Paul commented studying the baby's face while she patted his back.

"Excuse me? No, he's perfect. He's just as adorable as Aurora was as a baby. I thought you came here to see your daughter not to belittle me and my family." She quickly said back shifting the baby so that he was now standing in her lap.

"Okay, I'm sorry I said anything about your new kid. Where is Aurora?"

"She's with Kurt. He took her to ride one of the ponies. They're over there." Steph told him before pointing across the yard. Paul turned in the direction that she was pointing. He quickly picked out his daughter who was being lifted off the pony by Kurt. She looked precious. Stephanie had dressed her in a cute little green summer dress. A big smile was across her face as Angle took her into his arms. Levesque's heart sank as he watched Aurora place her arms around Kurt's neck to hold onto him as he held her. She looked happy to be with him; just like she used to be with him as a little baby. He should be the one spending time with her, not Angle.

"Levesque, I was wondering when you would show up. Have you met my youngest grandson? This is Andrew Vincent Angle. He's named after me, you know. I think we have a future WWE champion here." Vince said with a chuckle as he walked up to the table. He was beaming with pride as he looked down at baby Andy.

Vince's unannounced approach caused Paul to lose focus on his daughter and Kurt Angle. Levesque was now looking directly at his former father-in-law, Vince McMahon. He was taking a moment to internalize what Vince was babbling on about before he could reply.

"He's not even a year old…" Paul muttered looking at Vince like he was crazy. Why was Vince making such a big deal about that kid? He already had two other grandsons from Shane.

"Let me have my grandson for a little while, Steph." Vince told his daughter as he held his hands out for the baby.

"Okay, but Dad, I just fed him, don't shake him or move him around a lot." Stephanie warned her father as she handed over her youngest child to him.

Vince quickly gave his daughter a wave, blowing her off. His face lit up with excitement as he took his grandchild into his arms. Once in Vince's muscular arms, Andrew looked back at his mother with his arms stretched out toward her as he began to fuss.

"What's wrong my little wrestling protégé? Gramps knows just what to do!" Vince said with his voice full of enthusiasm. He quickly lifted the baby in the hair and placed his mouth on the baby's clothing covered belly and blew with enough force to provide a vibration that caused his grandson to howl with laughter.

"Hey Aurora, look who's here, it's your dad." Kurt told Aurora as he approached with her in his arms. He was quick to put her on her feet so that she could make her way over to her father.

"Kurt, where have you been? I thought we were going to have that talk." Vince said before giving Angle a slight nod. It was obvious to Paul that he did not wish to divulge the details in which he was talking about.

"We'll talk about that over some birthday cake, Dad." Kurt replied giving his father-in-law a pat on the back."

"Dad?" Paul repeated interjecting himself into the conversation. He looked over at Stephanie and shrugged his shoulders as a nonverbal way to ask her if Angle was really serious. Seeing the obvious mutual stroking between Vince McMahon and his "long lost son" Kurt Angle was enough to make Levesque sick. The only thing that made it all worth it was seeing his three year old daughter.

"Hey princess, happy birthday! Come here and give Daddy a hug and a kiss." Paul told his daughter as he wore a loving smile across his face. He knelt down so that he was a bit more on his daughter's level.

Aurora gave him a slight smile showing her little pearly whites before turning to hug Kurt's leg. After a moment of hiding her eyes, she slowly turned to look at her father again before changing her focus to Stephanie who was standing next to Angle. She was looking for her mother's reaction to her father's presence. It was almost as if she was waiting for her mother to tell her it was okay to go to Paul.

"Aurora, go see your dad. He missed you. I bet he got you a terrific birthday present." Steph said softly bending down to encourage her child to venture over to her own father.

After the little bit of coaxing from her mother, Aurora apprehensively walked over to her father who was ready to take her into his arms. Paul let out a long sigh after he picked up his little girl and held her tight. It felt like forever since the last time he was able to spend time with her. There were so many interruptions with SmackDown appearances and house shows that he was barely able to see her once a month. The way she was behaving, it was obvious that it wasn't enough time. She didn't hug him back as tightly as he held her. Then again, she was only three years old. Still, her arms were not around his neck, like they were when she hugged Kurt, they were at her sides.

"Daddy didn't know what you wanted for your birthday. How would you like Daddy to take you shopping at FAO Schwartz to get anything you want? How does that sound, princess?" Levesque asked after he let go of his embrace and ran his hands through his daughter's hair as he studied her cute little face.

"Mommy and my baby brother coming too?" Aurora quickly replied while she looked over at Steph who had taken a moment to take her eleven month old from her father who she believed was bouncing the baby around a bit too much.

"No, it's just going to me you and me, sweetheart. It's going to be our special time this weekend. Then I'll take you back to your mommy."

"No, I want mommy. I don't want to go." Little Aurora whined twisting her body while in her father's arms toward her mother. Just like her younger half brother, she had her arms outstretched to Stephanie.

Levesque couldn't help but feel rejected. He had been able to take rejection from his former wife and her family but having his own child, his own flesh and blood, not want to spend time with him was almost too much for him to take. Feelings of sadness and resentment began to fester deep inside. This was the McMahon family's fault. It was because they would not allow him the appropriate amount of time to see his daughter that she was no longer comfortable with him. He gave Stephanie his meanest scowl to show her that he didn't approve of their child's behavior toward him. Maybe she would get the message and own the blame for Aurora's misbehavior.

"Okay, I think we're finally ready to sing happy birthday!" Steph announced aloud. It was almost her way of defusing the situation that she sensed was building with Paul judging by the look on his face.

"Do you want to go to Daddy so Mommy can get the cake ready for big sister?" Steph asked the baby who let out a few kicks and a smile before he was passed to his father while Aurora watched from Paul's arms.

All the party guests crowded around the main table as Stephanie carefully lit the three birthday candles on the cake as Aurora watched from the edge of her father's lap. Angle stood behind his wife as he slowly rocked his son in his arms while he smiled awaiting the happy birthday song that was going to commence in a matter of moments.

"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Aurora! Happy birthday to you! Yay!" Everyone sang in unison before giving the three year old a round of applause.

Aurora blushed and smiling, loving all the attention she was receiving from her party guests. Steph leaned down and gave her child a kiss on the cheek before helping her lean over and blow out the candles which caused everyone to cheer again.

"Is the cake good, sweetheart?" Paul asked as he sat next to his daughter while she sat in her booster seat and ate her cake with her fork.

"Yes…" She replied in between bites.

After Stephanie, Kurt, and Linda finished serving everyone their cake, they made it a point to allow Paul some one on one time with his daughter while they talked amongst themselves. Even though Levesque liked spending time with his child, it was somewhat overshadowed when he noticed the McMahon-Angles sitting at another table. Stephanie was seated with Kurt, her son sleeping in her arms while Kurt had his arm around her while he talked with Vince. It wasn't long ago when he was the one sitting with Stephanie and her family. He used to be in the circle but now he was only an outsider looking in. He was really treated no differently than any of the other WWE employees that had come as party guests to Aurora's third birthday. The fact that he was Aurora Rose's father meant nothing to them.

"I want to go see Mommy." Aurora told her father as she too noticed Stephanie sitting at the other table across the yard. Seeing her mother took immediate precedence over the piece of cake that was in front of her. Paul was somewhat happy that his daughter wanted to go see her mother because it would give him an excuse to approach them and find out what they were all huddled up talking about. Slowly, Levesque made his way to where they were all sitting. He stood a foot or so away from them so that they wouldn't see him but he could see and hear them.

"Kurt, if you really want to do MMA, you have my full support. You'll be representing us, WWE, so you better know what you're doing in that cage." Vince told Angle.

"Kurt isn't going to do MMA, Dad. He knows how I feel about him putting his health at risk. Don't even bring it up to him because it's a dead issue." Stephanie quickly replied before her husband could even say a word after Vince's comment.

"Steph, you know I'm in good health now. Being successful in mixed martial arts isn't out of the realm of possibility for me. I'm not getting any younger, you know. The time for me to do it is now." Kurt told his wife as he watched her stand up with their sleeping baby. The look on her face showed her disapproval in her husband's logic.

"We are not having this discussion during Aurora's birthday party. You already know how I feel about you fighting. I want you to stay in good health so you can be with me to enjoy our little boy growing up. I want you to be able to play with him when he gets older. Now can you two please drop the MMA talk?" Steph asked getting somewhat annoyed with her husband's stubborn athletic drive that her father thought made him such an unstoppable force for the company.

"All right babe, whatever you say." Angle replied rolling his eyes which made his father-in-law chuckle a bit.

"I'll put baby Andy in his crib if you want to clean up the kitchen." Linda offered holding her arms out for the sleeping baby. Stephanie smiled and quickly took her mother up on her offer before they both walked off leaving Angle and McMahon sitting at the table.

"Pop, where did Mommy go?" Little Aurora asked approaching her grandfather after her father set her down on her feet.

"She's inside cleaning up in the kitchen. Why don't we go get you a balloon animal from that goofy looking clown over there?" Vince said before standing up and taking Aurora's hand in his. She was happy to go with her grandfather without any hesitation. This only made Paul feel worse; he seemed to be the only one that she showed uncertainty with.

"Wow, the only Olympic gold medalist in WWE history is actually pussy whipped by his wife. Damn Angle, and I thought you had some balls. Stephanie's got you by the short and curlies. You're letting her run your life. Who is she to tell you when you can compete? She's supposed to support you not discourage your path to success." Paul said to Kurt as soon as Vince walked away with Aurora.

Angle let out a sigh before he shifted in the folding chair he was sitting in. Paul watched as Kurt digested everything he had spewed out at him. Levesque had done his best to paint his ex-wife as a controlling and manipulating bitch. It wasn't always that hard to do so. Despite her bitchiness, Levesque still wanted her back and hopefully this was one way to go about it. After he thought for a few quick moments, Angle spoke.

"She's just worried about me. I don't blame her for that. She's a great wife and mother. I love her with all my heart." Angle finally replied showing a faint smile. It was obvious that Paul's baiting didn't work.

"You can call it whatever you want, Angle. You're just blind to her controlling ways. Take it from the guy she was married to for almost five years. I wish someone would have warned me about her bullshit."

"Stephanie is none of your business anymore, Paul. She's not your wife anymore. She's mine. I don't need any of your 'advice'. But I will thank you." Kurt said getting up from his chair so he could stand face to face with Paul.

"For what?" Levesque asked going toe to toe with his ex-wife's new husband.

"For being such a shitty husband and a conniving prick; you helped Stephanie and I see that there was so much more to our relationship than being just friends. If it wasn't for your bullshit, Stephanie would have never come to me for strength and support and we would never have fallen in love. So thanks for that, buddy." Kurt said with a smirk before he gave Paul a good smack on the arm before he walked away.

Levesque was left standing there seething. Angle's insult was like salt in a deep open wound. He knew exactly what to say to play on Paul's emotions. He probably even knew that Paul was still in love with Stephanie. That was Kurt Angle's power. He had the higher ground. Stephanie was no longer Stephanie McMahon-Levesque but Stephanie McMahon-Angle.

"Do you need any help with anything?" Paul asked his ex-wife the moment he walked into her kitchen to see her scrubbing out her kitchen sink. It was officially the first time he was stepping foot in the Angle home. He was only doing so at a chance to speak with Steph in private.

"No Paul, I'm fine, thank you. Where's Aurora? I thought you came here to spend time with her." Steph replied without even looking up at her ex-husband as he moved further into the kitchen area where she was cleaning.

"I came here to spend time with you too. Steph-" Paul confessed in a whisper as he placed his right hand on her right arm while moving behind her.

"Paul, don't. Don't make this about us. There is no 'us' anymore. The only thing we share is our daughter. When you're not with her, you're free to go off to New York and sleep with whatever cheap slut is taking your photograph that week. It doesn't concern me anymore and I don't care." Steph quickly replied jerking away from his touch as she cut him off before he could finish his sentence. Her words were coarse as she quickly rattled the sentences off her tongue with ease.

Paul closed his eyes feeling her hateful words tear at his heart like tiny daggers which created a slightly bigger whole than what was already there. She never missed a chance to bring up his year affair with former WWE photographer, Michelle North. Funny, she never acknowledged the fact that he broke up with her in an attempt to fix their marriage. Why was she so negative toward him even a year after their divorce? It was as if she only remembered the end of their marriage and not the beginning or middle. Didn't she remember falling in love with him? What about their wedding or the birth of their daughter? The happy memories certainly outweighed the bad ones.

Slowly Paul leaned in slightly again so that she could hear the words he was about to mutter into her ear.

"It wasn't always bad, Stephanie…"


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Two

"I miss my mommy! Get me my mommy! Mommy! I want my mommy!"

Paul sat with his face in his hands. Aurora was screaming and crying on the top of her lungs. Levesque had taken his daughter back to his house after her birthday party. It was his weekend to spend with her. She had seemed to be okay up until it was time for her to go to bed. The room, Paul had decorated the best of his ability for what he thought his little girl would like. Just about every shade of pink could be found along with other light pastels. There was Aurora crying her eyes out while sitting straight up in her big girl bed.

"You'll see Mommy on Sunday. Right now you're with your daddy and I love you." Paul replied to his screaming child in a voice that showed he was trying to reason with her. Reasoning with a three year old, especially one who wanted her mother was almost an impossible task.

"No! I want Mommy now! I want to go home! I want my mommy! Get me my mommy!" Little Aurora cried this time even louder as she disagreed with her father.

Levesque felt completely crushed. His own child didn't want to stay with him for a mere night let alone a weekend. Despite how enjoyable he tried to make her time with him be, she still obviously felt uncomfortable being with him. What happened to his little baby girl who would automatically smile at him when he walked into a room? Where was his little angel who would watch him wrestle on the television and blow kisses at the screen with her mommy's help? Did that baby girl no longer exist?

"Aurora, be quiet and go to sleep! You're like a damn broken record!" Paul hollered finally allowing her crying jag to send him over the edge. He was sick and tired of hearing her crying and demand to be with Stephanie. Levesque had enough of seeing the tears flood her face as she clutched to her stuffed bunny rabbit he had bought her from FAO Schwartz. Levesque wanted to leave his daughter alone for the night because he thought she would self soothe because she was over tired. Oh boy, was he ever wrong.

His sudden outburst of frustration caused Aurora's crying to even intensify as she now sounded like she was about to get sick. She had gotten herself so worked up that her face was beet red and she was coughing and gagging. Paul felt like the top of his head was going to come off. He massaged his forehead with his right hand while Aurora began to kick her covers off and throw herself back against her pillow. What was he going to do?

"The baby is down for the night." Steph told her husband as she walked into the living room where he was watching a UFC match on their flat screen high definition television.

"Okay…" Kurt replied without diverting his eyes from the screen. He was almost in a trance like state, his eyes focusing in on every single punch, kick, and grapple that was being executed in the cage. He did this in depth studying for every single match every week. The Angles' DVR was filled with UFC matches for the days of the week that he was traveling.

Stephanie narrowed her eyes before walking right in front of the plasma screen so that she was blocking the middle of the picture. She knew from experience that when Kurt was watching MMA fights on TV, he would never listen to a word she had to say unless she took action to divert his attention to her.

"Kurt, Andrew's asleep. We've got the whole night to ourselves, especially since Paul has Aurora for the weekend. I was thinking we could fool around tonight." Steph said in her best seductive voice. She was hoping that by simply suggesting that they be intimate would be enough to break his focus on the fight.

"What did you say, babe? Can you move a little to one side so I can see?" Kurt asked as he strained his neck to try and see the screen.

Stephanie rolled her eyes and exhaled. She really hated how obsessed he was with MMA. Sure it would be fine if he just liked watching it but Kurt took it another level with the way he immersed himself in it. Steph didn't know of any other guy who would allow talk of having sex go in one ear and out the other. That was Kurt when he was watching MMA. Stephanie knew she was going to have to try a more physical hands-on approach.

"What do you want to see, Kurt? The fight or this?" Steph asked in a sexy voice as she unbuttoned her top to expose her engorged bosom that was barely being contained by her bra. Since she was still breast feeding their son, her breasts had stayed swollen. She couldn't wait until she got Andrew completely weaned.

The muscle on the right side of Kurt's mouth began to constrict as a happy smirk formed while watching his wife remove her bra. Angle slowly rolled his tongue over both his top and bottom lip while watching his wife give him a short little strip tease with the UFC match still going on in the background.

"Come here baby." Kurt whispered as he motioned for Stephanie to approach him where he was sitting on the sofa.

Stephanie returned a sly smile before slowly sashaying across the living room to her husband. He was quick to sit up and meet her, pulling her into his lap so that she was straddling him. After a few quick open mouth kisses, Steph let out a sigh as Kurt's kisses trailed down her bare neck and chest. While Kurt was kissing and caressing her, his eyes strayed to the MMA match that was in the final round and getting down to the wire where a knockout was surly going to happen.

It was when she went to pull his shirt up over his head that Stephanie noticed that Kurt was still watching the match even during their foreplay. She gave him a good punch to his chest which was enough to bring his eyes back to her.

"Kurt, are you going to make love to me or are you going to watch UFC?" She asked bluntly showing her annoyance by his determination to stay into what was going on in the match.

"Sorry I got distracted. Here, let me turn it off." Kurt replied before grabbing the universal remote and turning the plasma television off.

Steph's smile returned showing her approval with his choice to turn off the television. After Angle tossed the remote aside, he quickly removed his shirt and threw it to the floor. He let out a sigh as his wife began to shower his face with kisses. Kurt was beginning to breathe heavy feeling himself get excited. Stephanie ran her fingertips across the length of his hard chest as Kurt gently brushed her hair away from her face. Her hands stopped at his waist and she quickly began to undo his belt and dress pants. The sound of the telephone ringing caused the intimate moment to come to an abrupt halt.

"Shit, I hope the phone isn't going to wake the baby." Steph quickly commented as she scrambled for the phone that was on a coffee table nearby. Her getting off the couch allowed Kurt to readjust himself in his unbuttoned pants while he waited and watched his wife answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Steph, it's Paul."

"Is everything okay? Why am I hearing Aurora crying in the background? Did something happen? Is she okay?" Steph quickly asked rattling off the questions with fear in her voice as she turned to look at her husband who looked just as concerned.

"She's fine, she's not hurt or anything but she's in consolable. I can't get her to stop crying. I've never seen Aurora throw a tantrum like this before. She wants to be with you. I think it would be best if you came over right now and picked her up. I think she's on the verge of making herself throw up, that's how worked up she is." Levesque explained to his ex-wife.

Paul hated the fact that he was calling Stephanie and telling her that she needed to pick up their daughter because he couldn't handle taking care of her for a night. It was embarrassing. This weekend was his first chance in a long time to spend one on one time with Aurora. He was now giving their precious time up by having Steph come and pick her up. This was probably exactly what Steph wanted. He could tell that she didn't like letting Aurora go spend time with him. It was like she wanted their daughter all to herself; like she wanted to create a life for their daughter without him in it.

"Is Aurora okay? What was that call about?" Kurt asked as soon as Steph ended the call.

"She's really upset and Paul can't get her to settle her down. I'm going to go get her and bring her home." Steph replied as bent down to pick up her clothes that laid scattered all over the living room floor.

"Do you need me to go with you?" Angle asked zipping up and buttoning his pants while he watched Stephanie quickly get dressed.

"No, I'll be fine. You stay with Andrew. I won't be long."

Paul had Aurora sit on the bottom step of the staircase that faced the front door to his home. She was still whining and crying about how she wanted her mother. It was getting to the point where Levesque was starting to get angry at his daughter's crying jag that seemed to have no end. Even when he told her that her mom was on her way to pick her up, she still wouldn't be quiet.

"Close your mouth! I'm sick and tired of hearing you cry and whine! This was mine time with you! I tried to make everything nice for you yet you want nothing to do with me! Just like your mother!" Paul yelled allowing his frustrations to surface.

His hollering caused Aurora to hide her eyes in the stuffed bunny rabbit while she continued to cry. The doorbell rang and Levesque was quick to answer the door because he knew that it was Stephanie. Finally Aurora's long drawn out tantrum was coming to an end.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Aurora cried running to her mother the moment Paul opened the door and she saw that it was Stephanie standing on the other side of it.

"Sweetheart, what happened? Are you okay? Why were you so upset that you didn't want to stay with your dad?" Steph asked quickly picking up her child the moment she ran into her arms. Aurora hid her face in her mother's chest as she finally stopped crying and fell silent.

"Thank God she stopped crying. You have no idea what a little brat she was tonight. She was fine earlier but when bedtime came it was like all hell broke loose. I'm her father, she should be just has happy to be with me as she is you. My own child doesn't know me anymore because I never get time with her. Vince refuses to put me on RAW." Paul told his ex-wife as he watched her rock their three year old in her arms.

"That's all bullshit, Paul. We both live in Greenwich. You can come and see Aurora any weekend you want if you just pick up the phone and call me. You make no effort to see her and then you wonder why she isn't attached to you anymore."

"Well I wouldn't be facing all this if you didn't divorce me." Paul replied after a moment of silence. It was like he was finally allowing what he had been thinking to come out.

"And if I didn't divorce you I wouldn't be happily married to Kurt and have Andrew. Why are you doing this?"

"Because I think you got pregnant and married that jackass Angle to get back at me for the affair and the miscarriage." Levesque told her, speaking exactly what was on his mind without any filter. It was the first time that he actually told Steph his view on why she left him for Kurt Angle.

"Paul, it's late, I need to get Aurora to bed, and I don't have time for this. RAW is in Youngstown Ohio at the Chevrolet Centre, if you want to come and visit your daughter. Good night." Stephanie whispered before walking away with her now sleeping child leaving her ex-husband standing alone at the door to his house.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Three

Kurt and Stephanie arrived at the Chevrolet Centre mid day. Most of the wrestlers on the roster had yet to arrive but of course Vince McMahon was already well into his production duties with his cronies huddled around him as he barked out orders.

"It should be interesting to see if Paul is actually going to show up." Steph whispered into her husband's right ear as they walked together with both Aurora and their son. The three year old walked between them holding both of their hands while Steph carried baby Andy on her hip.

Steph chose not to tell Aurora that her father was coming to see her just in case he decided not to show up. She didn't want there to be any chance of her daughter being upset by his absence even though she knew the chances of that were pretty slim.

"I hope he does. He really needs to start spending more time with his little girl." Kurt replied aloud as he glanced down at Aurora who was happy and walking along with them.

"You never told me, what exactly did he say to you when you picked Aurora up last night? You told me he was pissed but about what?" Kurt then asked.

"Aurora, go take your crayons and paper over to that table over there and make mommy some pretty pictures." Steph instructed her daughter as she pointed the table and chairs out that were only a few feet away backstage.

"Okay." She replied taking her box of crayons and her sketch book before she ran off.

"It was just his usual bullshit." Stephanie finally told her husband once Aurora far enough away where she wouldn't hear her talk about Paul.

Steph didn't want to go into details for Kurt about Paul's comments last night because she knew it would upset him for no reason. With there being a chance that Levesque might show up, she didn't want any possibility of a confrontation. Kurt was an easy going guy most of the time, but if he ever felt provoked or challenged, he became a ruthless competitor no matter who he was in conflict with. Paul on the other hand, could be quite verbally confrontational at times but ultimately didn't want things to get physical if the guy he was fighting with would have the advantage in a fight, and Kurt would.

Angle took the cue that his wife didn't want to elaborate on the conversation she had with her ex husband judging by her pissed off demeanor. It wasn't the first time his wife had been rattled by Paul's uncooperative behavior since the beginning of the joint custody of Aurora. Kurt tried to stay out of the communication between Paul and Stephanie about Aurora because after all, she was their child, but at times he had to weigh in after seeing how negatively it was all effecting Steph. She was foremost his wife and her unhappiness made it his problem to address.

"Go to Daddy so Mommy can go to work." Steph said in a sweet voice to her eleven month old as she handed him over to Kurt. The baby smiled and babbled a bit after being passed to his father's arms.

"Do you want me to come and get you when we start the production meeting? Are you going to want to sit in on it?" Steph asked Kurt while she watched him interact with their son.

"No, I'm going to just keep my eye on Aurora and play with the baby. I'll sit in on the meeting next week." Angle replied before giving his wife a quick kiss on the lips. After the quick kiss, Steph smiled and touched her baby son's face once more before walking away to meet with her father before the meeting.

"Mama, mama…" Andy called out along with a string of gibberish all strung together like it was his own personal language. His little eyes were focused on his departing mother.

"Mommy's going to go work with grandpa. You're going to chill with Daddy." Kurt told his baby. He smiled as his words caused Andrew to place his hands on her face and smile. The baby then let out more short babbling sentences filled with inflection.

"Yeah? You don't say. That's very interesting, Andy." Kurt said with a chuckle as he pretended to understand the baby talk.

"Hey man, how's it going?"

Angle's attention was diverted from his eleven month old as Chris Irvine approached him. Irvine walked up in a fresh pressed suit much like the one Kurt himself was wearing. On Chris' shoulder draped the World Wrestling Entertainment championship that had 'Chris Jericho' on the name plate. The way Irvine carried himself with the title belt on him showed how much being champion again in the company meant to him.

"Hey Chris, are you enjoying your lengthy title reign?" Angle asked shifting his baby into his other arm.

"Absolutely, and I just wanted to thank you again for putting in a good word for me in the creative meetings and for convincing Vince that I could carry the ball for more than a month as WWE champion." Irvine replied shifting his title on his shoulder.

"Don't worry about it man. You deserve to be champion. A nice title reign for you is long overdue and I'm glad I had a hand in making that happen."

"I know I said this before but I just wanted to say it again. Your influence as the McMahons new son-in-law is really starting to turn this company around with righting all the wrongs that were done to bolster the over inflated ego of that ass clown, Levesque." Chris said speaking his mind freely about Paul Levesque now that he was no longer in the McMahon family.

"Thanks man, but can we kind of keep the talk about the guy to a minimum? I don't want anyone getting upset." Kurt said in a soft spoken voice as he moved his head, motioning in Aurora's direction.

As much as he agreed with what Chris was saying, he still cared about being careful about what was said in front of Aurora. While he too wasn't fond of Paul, she was still Aurora's father. He knew he didn't want any of Karen's friends saying disparaging things about him in front of his kids.

"Oh yeah, right, sorry. Hey, I'm loving the build up for the number one contender match between you and Jeff Hardy. I'm surprised Vince was willing to give him another push to the main event after his past drug problems."

"Well we all have our past problems, but Jeff is a really good worker and I know we'll have a five star match; I guaranteed Vince that. I have no problem giving Jeff the rub if it's going to fill seats and make us money." Kurt explained.

"See that's what I mean about you, you put the company first before putting yourself over."

"Well I already know how good I am and so does Vince. I want to use my talent to really help make some guys like I tried to do in TNA. I'm not like Steph's ex who constantly felt like he had to fear for his spot because he didn't really deserve to hold it to begin with." Angle said in a low voice causing Chris Irvine to nod in agreement with a smile.

"Yeah you've got that right." Irvine laughed.

"Kurt Angle, I just found out that we're tag team partners tonight going up against the Hardys. I just wanted to let you know that it will be an honor being in the ring with you." Jack "Swagger" Hager said extending his hand to Kurt.

"Thanks, I appreciate it. I'm glad you're excited about the match tonight." Kurt replied after a few seconds of silence. Chris looked like he was going to start laughing as he looked over at Angle as if to ask if this young guy was for real.

"Thank you so much for requesting to have me drafted to RAW after I lost the ECW title to Cage." Jack said his voice filled with enthusiasm and a touch of nervousness almost as if he wasn't a fellow WWE wrestler but just a large Kurt Angle fan.

"You're welcome, I'm still trying to push for Jay to come over to RAW or SmackDown. I know Adam really wants him on SmackDown with him."

"Listen, any pointers you could give me after our ring work together, I would really appreciate it. I'm ready to learn anything you want to teach me. I remember when you won your first WWE championship at No Mercy 2000 against The Rock. Your wife, Stephanie, was in your corner. Well she wasn't your wife at the time but she is now. I was eighteen years old when I saw it and-"

"Yeah I'd be happy to work with you sometime in the near future. I'm going to go sit with my stepdaughter now and watch her draw. We'll all meet later today to go over the match so I'll see you then." Kurt quickly replied cutting off what was starting to become a monologue tribute to him. While Kurt was appreciative of all the adulation Swagger wanted to give him, it was getting a bit annoying. Chris Irvine on the other hand, thought it was hilarious and was barely able to contain his laughter.

"Okay Mr. Angle. I'll talk to you later. Good looking kid by the way. Not that I think a baby would be good looking, I'm just saying that your son looks like he's healthy and is going to be a great future wrestler. That's all I'm saying. I'm not a pervert or anything." Jack babbled quickly correcting himself as he started to follow Kurt down the hall while Angle walked toward Aurora. Irvine was snickering behind Swagger's back.

"What are you drawing there, princess?" Kurt asked his stepdaughter taking a seat next to her at the table.

"It's a puppy. See?" Aurora answered back with a smile as she pointed at her abstract art that consisted of a few straight lines and some circles.

"Oh yeah I definitely see it. That's a real work of art." Angle replied with a smile before giving Aurora a quick kiss on the top of her head.

"See the puppy baby brother?" She asked with enthusiasm holding the drawing up close to Andrew's face causing him to squirm a bit in his father's arms.

"He likes it a lot. Did you draw that picture for him?"

"Yeah, it's a present for him. This is for him but I'm going to make Mommy a picture too." Aurora announced taking a blank sheet of computer paper from the stack her mother had given her. She picked the red crayon up from the large pile of crayola crayons that were scattered on the table out of the box.

Paul Levesque had been standing just down the hall watching his daughter interacting with Kurt Angle without either of them knowing. He could feel an overwhelming sense of anger begin to build inside. The anger was his pure jealousy of how happy Aurora looked while spending time with Angle. She was his child and yet, she acted like she wanted nothing to do with him when he tried spending time with her. Why was she choosing Kurt Angle, her mother's new husband, over her own flesh and blood father?

"Hi sweetheart, are you making a pretty picture?" Paul asked in a sweet voice as he finally approached his three year old daughter and Kurt.

"Hey Paul, here, why don't you sit and color with Aurora. You can have my seat." Kurt greeted him, ready to get up.

"I don't need your permission to spend time with my own child, Angle." Levesque barked back causing Kurt's eyes to narrow. He was surprised by Paul's hostility toward him when he was trying his best to be polite.

"I think you need a diaper change, little guy. You keep Daddy business when Mommy's at work, don't you?" Angle told baby Andy while getting to his feet.

"Good idea, go back to your tour bus that you and Stephanie had custom made and leave us alone." Levesque told Angle quickly taking a seat in the chair that Kurt had vacated.

"Aurora, I'll be back in a bit. I'm just going to change your brother on the bus. You spend time with your dad." Kurt told Aurora before he walked away with the baby.

"What are you drawing, sweetheart?" Paul asked watching as Aurora made deliberate lines and shapes on the paper like she knew exactly what she was creating as she drew it.

"It's me with mommy and daddy. Andrew is there too."

"You drew your daddy, huh? Where is Daddy on the paper?" He asked leaning over to get a good look at his little girl's masterpiece in progress.

"There…" Aurora pointed at one of the loosely drawn people made with a variety of ovals and circles. Despite her limited drawing skills at the age of three, she did include some detail like her and her mother's hair.

"Where's daddy's hair? I think you forgot it. Why would you give you and mommy hair and not Daddy?" Paul asked with a chuckle. He loved the fact that he was spending time with her daughter and interacting with her over her elementary artwork.

"Daddy doesn't have any hair!" Aurora exclaimed with a laugh thinking Paul was being very silly for thinking that hair was needed on the person she drew.

Levesque felt like all the air had been forced out of his body. It took him a few seconds to actually believe what he thought he heard from his daughter. Aurora believed that Kurt Angle was her father. Paul's first thought was to holler at his three year old and dispose of that drawing. He refrained from doing this. After all, it was not Aurora he should be upset with. Someone had to be telling her that Kurt was her daddy and it had to be Stephanie and Angle himself.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Four

Stephanie sat with her father and the rest of the production team as they went over the final script for tonight's show. Vince was summarizing the main event of the show while everyone followed along with their own copy of the script.

"We go straight to our main event of the night, the tag team match of the Hardy Boyz facing Jack Swagger and Kurt Angle. Basically the guys are going to work out the planning of the match while highlighting Kurt and Jeff's current feud leading into Night of Champions pay-per-view this weekend. All of this will culminate with Kurt Angle taking a chair to the Hardy Boyz and putting the ankle lock on Jeff ending the match by DQ. Then we'll have Randy Orton get up from the commentary table, and RKO Angle before disposing over Swagger with ease. This attack of course is in retaliation from when Kurt gave him the finger earlier before the match. Jericho will show up on the stage looking on at Orton as the show goes off the air." Vince explained to the production group as the meeting was reaching the conclusion of the RAW script.

"Why did we decide to put Randy Orton on commentary during the match again?" A young member of the creative team asked speaking up after Vince finished speaking. He seemed a bit hesitant to ask.

"Orton knows that either Kurt Angle or Jeff Hardy could walk out of Night of Champions as the number one contender for the WWE championship. Of course Orton, being egotistical, believes he is going to win the title at the pay-per-view. It makes sense to have him scouting his potential challengers." Vince quickly replied allowing his glasses to slide down the bridge of his nose while he looked over at the young employee.

"I'm still not happy about you deciding to push Jeff Hardy." Steph told her father looking up from her copy of the script.

"Steph, we've already talked about this. Kurt volunteered to work with Jeff and give him a push at the pay-per-view. Kurt sees money in the match and so do I. I trust your husband and-"

"Just what the hell is going on here, Stephanie?" Paul hollered as he stormed into the conference room abruptly cutting off his former father-in-law.

"This is a production meeting. The question is, what are you doing here?" Vince replied. He didn't look very happy to see Levesque there at the arena. Since Paul was a SmackDown superstar, there was no reason for him to be at a RAW show.

"Whatever this is about, Paul, it can wait until after the meeting." Steph said quickly after her father's words.

"No, we need to address this right now!" Levesque yelled holding up Aurora's drawing.

Every member of the production team was silent and looking at each other. They were watching Paul with looks on their faces that suggested that they thought he was crazy. Many of them believed that the divorce from Stephanie was his undoing. At one time, Paul had all the backstage influence he wanted, when he used to sit among them during the production meetings every week, but now, he was like a stranger among them.

"Stephanie, would you just humor him and step outside to discuss whatever he wants. We're just going to wrap up the meeting." Vince asked his daughter after rolling his eyes at what he believed was a ridiculous interruption by Paul. He just wanted his daughter to make him leave so that things could continue on, business as usual.

Stephanie let out a slow exhale of air before she slowly rose from her seat at the head table. Reluctantly, she followed her ex-husband out of the conference room and stopped in the middle of the hallway once he did. She could only imagine what now had him in such a huff. It didn't take much. She was sick and tired of his childish tantrums. When she divorced him last year, Steph thought that she would never again have to be subjected to them; she was obviously wrong.

"Look at this picture our daughter drew! There's what she thinks her father looks like!" Levesque hollered pointing at the drawing to show Stephanie the evidence.

"Paul, it's a three year old's drawing, of course she isn't exactly a detailed artist. Is this what you pulled me out of the meeting for?"

"The drawing of her father doesn't have any hair." Paul quickly said trying to make his point in a roundabout way.

"So maybe she didn't include hair like she didn't include eyebrows or hands."

"I asked her where daddy's hair was since she gave you hair! And do you know what she said?" Levesque asked his ex-wife getting ready to make his point but seeing if Steph would approach the subject first.

"To save time, why don't you just tell me?" She asked impatiently looking back down the hall toward the conference room where her father was wrapping up the meeting without her.

"She said that her daddy doesn't have any hair." Paul said lowering his volume as he spoke with intensity looking directly at Stephanie who was still looking in the direction of the meeting and not even at him as he spoke. His words however caused her to look back at him before looking away.

"That doesn't surprise you does it? You and Angle brain washing my child into thinking that he is her father!" Paul said judging by Steph's reaction that she knew all about how Aurora was calling Kurt her daddy. The idea infuriated Paul and caused him to begin yelling again.

"No, no we're not!" Steph hollered back looking completely outraged by Paul's wild accusation of her influencing Aurora to call Kurt her father.

"Yes you are! Why else would she think that? Huh? Let me make this clear, I'm Daddy! I'm the only person on the face of this earth that Aurora should be calling Daddy!" Levesque screamed pointing his finger in Stephanie's face, much to her displeasure.

"Paul, we've been correcting her every single time she's called Kurt 'Daddy'." It just started happening after Kurt and I married last year and Andrew was born. Kurt has really stepped up with the role of stepfather and Aurora hears me refer to him as Daddy for the baby." Steph explained calmly. She was hoping that her civil tone of voice would have a calming effect on her ex-husband so that he would stop making a scene backstage.

"Oh so this isn't a new problem. Why didn't you make me aware of this before? I have a right to know about what's happening to my child!"

"Maybe if you would have made an effort to spend some time with her you would know about it; Then again, Paul, if you were being an active father, maybe she wouldn't be calling Kurt her daddy! Being a father is more than writing a support check every month! Maybe Aurora is calling Kurt 'Daddy' because he is more of a father to her than you are!" Steph said matching his intensity as she extended her neck, pointing her chin out toward him. She knew she was cutting him to the quick with her words, but sadly, they were true.

"You think I don't want to spend time with her? I want more than anything to spend more time with her! I requested to be moved to RAW so I could see her every single week! You're dad refuses to let me do that! So if there's anyone to blame it's him!"

"Oh bullshit! Don't pin this on my father! I told you before, you can come any weekend and visit your daughter! Just pick up the phone and call us and you can see her! I'm so sick of your narcissistic attitude! Everything is always about you! You're always the victim!"

"Oh right, and Angle is perfect and I'm this horrible person who sucked at being a husband and now a father! Fuck you!"

Stephanie's cruel words infuriated him. She was acting like it was entirely his fault that Aurora wasn't used to spending time with him anymore. How quickly she forgot that it was her who decided to leave him. If she would have never divorced him, then their daughter wouldn't be as confused as she was now. He knew he was a good father, his little girl loved being with him in her infancy.

"I didn't say that you were a terrible person. I married you and had a child with you so there has to be some good I saw in you. I'm just making you aware of the fact that you haven't made time to see Aurora this past year for whatever reason you want to give me. During that time, Kurt has fulfilled the role of father for her. Aurora doesn't remember when we were married and lived together. As you recall, she was just turning two when we finalized the divorce. You can't be mad at her for thinking that Kurt for her daddy." Stephanie explained in a normal tone of voice deciding not to continue the escalading argument. She could tell by the look on Paul's face that he was taken aback by her words. He closed his eyes for a moment and swallowed hard.

"And you and Angle are fine with letting her think that. This is another way for you to punish me. As if marrying Kurt Angle and giving him a son wasn't enough. Now you want to allow our daughter to forget me." He whispered under his breath, his voice was raspy as he seemed to be on the edge of losing his composure. Rarely did Paul ever cry, but it seemed like he was about to now.

"That's ridiculous, Paul. If you honestly feel that way then perhaps you should seek professional help." Steph replied looking directly into his sparkling hazel eyes. She couldn't believe what was coming out of his mouth. How could he think that she would try and turn Aurora against her own father? How could he think that her great life with Kurt was directly influenced by her dislike for him and how he treated her in the past?

Stephanie started to walk away from Levesque but stopped suddenly when she felt his hand on her arm. His grip, while abrupt, was gentle and he was pulling her back toward him to signal that the conversation between them wasn't yet over. Steph turned back to look at him. He was looking her directly in the eyes. His lips separated like he was about to say something but the words didn't come right out. Stephanie raised her eyebrows and continued to stare at him, waiting to hear just what it was he had to say to her.

"I'm still that same guy that you fell in love with all those years ago." Paul whispered moving toward her slowly yet with confidence.

"Paul, just stop…" She quickly replied putting her hand out to meet his clothed muscular chest so that he couldn't move any closer toward her.

"You're still the same Stephy, my Stephy…" Levesque muttered as he removed her hand from his chest and continued to move forward. Despite his ex-wife's detachment toward him, he still managed to take her into his arms for an embrace.

As soon as he had Steph in his arms, Paul allowed his nose to brush up against her long flowing hair. He breathed in deep and held the oh so familiar scent of his former wife's perfume. She smelled just like he remembered. God he missed her. He would have given anything for her to wrap her arms around him and hug him back instead of just passively allowing him to hold her in his arms. Why was she fighting her feelings for him? What was she afraid of?

Stephanie's eyes narrowed and she looked puzzled by the hug that came out of nowhere. She let out a quick breath of air as she patted him on the back awaiting for him to break his embrace but he didn't. It felt strange being in his arms again, part of her wanted to pull away but she decided to allow him to continue the hug until he decided to let her go.

"Steph, did I miss something? What's going on, honey?" Kurt asked looking a bit surprised by seeing his wife being hugged by her ex-husband. Steph had been facing his direction so he could see the look in her face and tell that she wasn't exactly comfortable with what was transpiring.

"No actually, babe, you're right on time. Paul is upset about something that we'll talk about later in private." Stephanie explained while she used the opportunity her husband's interruption gave her to step away from Paul and finally break from his embrace.

The moment Levesque no longer had her in his arms, he focused his attention on Kurt Angle. He was looking on at him, his eyes full of resentment. Why did Angle have to show up just when he felt like him and his former wife were reconnecting? At least his appearance allowed him to confront Kurt about Aurora.

"I'm Aurora's Daddy! Not you!" This was all that escaped Paul's mouth as he walked right up to Kurt just to say those five words. Angle looked like he was completely insane because of his outburst that seemed to him to come from out of nowhere.

"Who's disputing that?" Kurt asked as he watched Paul storm away.

"Just ignore him. I talked to him." Steph assured his husband as she approached him. "Where's the baby?"

"I put him down for a nap in the playpen near Aurora. So how did the hug fit into that talk?" Angle asked cocking his head slightly.

"He just hugged me out of nowhere. Why, seeing him hug me, did it make you jealous?" Steph asked with a slight smile and eyebrow raise as she moved closer to her husband.

"Oh yeah, insanely; these are the only arms you belong in. I don't want him touching you ever again." Kurt whispered with a slight smile as he ran his hand gently over his wife's face, caressing her as she closed her eyes. His loving touch caused Stephanie to take him into her arms for a passionate kiss.

Paul watched from where he stood up against the wall while further down the hallway. He looked crestfallen as he watched the Angles' exchange of affection and how Steph could just blow off his words like they meant nothing while she kissed on Kurt Angle. She looked to be care free while she wrapped her arms around Angle's thick neck, holding him tightly just like Paul had wished she had done to him only moments ago. Kurt's hands both started at her hips but his right hand slowly moved to her backside and squeezed it. This caused Steph to smile as she broke their kiss only for a moment before capturing his lips with hers once again.

Perhaps Angle knew he was watching. The kiss which Kurt had control of was deep and unbridled, not what someone would expect to be a public display of affection. Angle's passive aggressiveness was apparent in the way he was kissing her, just like that wave and cocky smirk in the parking lot after the divorce finalization. He was sending Paul the message that Stephanie was now with him…and only him.

Vince McMahon came strutting out of the conference room followed by all the production team members who quickly shuffled past him and down the hall. They did not notice what Vince had and that was Kurt and Stephanie still kissing in the hallway. Paul was sure that Vince would put an end to the Angles disgusting public display of affection for he was watching them for a good number of seconds.

"Another grandbaby on the way soon?" Vince asked in his voice in his big booming voice that he usually reserved for television. He then smiled big and gave his son-in-law a pat on the back.

Vince's words caused the kiss to come to an abrupt end. Steph's eyes widened as Kurt looked at her puzzled by Vince's odd behavior. What father was happy about seeing his daughter making out with her husband? Vince wasn't a normal father. By seeing Kurt and Steph showing affection, he immediately thought he was getting more grandchildren. But why was he being all cool toward Kurt Angle? Paul knew for sure that if Vince would have caught he and Stephanie kissing while they were married, he wouldn't have been so thrilled with seeing it. The favoritism Vince showed for Kurt Angle was nauseating. How thinks changed from the days after Angle left WWE for TNA. He heard McMahon call Kurt everything in the book for leaving WWE and now, after Kurt divorced his wife and was willing to come back to WWE, marry and procreate with Stephanie, he was once again Vince's golden boy.

Paul had seen enough. Before he was going to leave the arena, he wanted to see his daughter one more time. Aurora was still sitting at the table drawing but this time Andrew was lying in the playpen right by the table asleep. The three year old was constantly looking over at her younger sibling making sure he was still laying there since Kurt had told her to keep an eye on him.

"Hi sweetheart…" Paul said approaching his daughter with a kind smile on his face causing her to look up from her drawing.

"Shh, my baby brother's sleeping. You can't wake him up." Aurora explained in her best whisper so that Paul could hear her and be warned about the sleeping baby.

Paul rolled his eyes and looked over to where the sleeping eleven month old was laying. From where Paul was standing all he saw of the baby was his head. Paul let out a chuckle noticing the similarities of the baby's head shape and Kurt Angle's. The baby was definitely Angle's. Levesque didn't exactly like his daughter referring to Kurt's son as her 'baby brother'. The baby boy wasn't his and Steph's child like Aurora was, so therefore, the baby wasn't Aurora's sibling.

"Don't call it your brother, Aurora. It's not your brother. I'm going to go home now. You be a good girl. I love you." Paul whispered giving his daughter a quick kiss on top of her head.

"He is too my baby brother!" Aurora exclaimed aloud with her eyebrows furrowed right after Levesque walked away. Her sudden outburst caused Andrew to pop his head up off the playpen mat.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment. **

Chapter Five

"Aurora, do you remember when Mommy talked to you about how you and Andrew each have your own Daddy?" Stephanie asked her three year old daughter as she tucked her into her little bed on the luxury bus. She thought that bedtime would be a perfect opportunity to have a talk with her little girl about her parental confusion. Aurora shook her head as a silent response to her mother's question.

"Well, you do have your own Daddy. Andrew's daddy is Kurt. Your daddy is Paul. Your daddy loves you very much and it hurts his feelings when you call Kurt your daddy." Steph explained slowly hoping her daughter would grasp the concept she was trying to explain to her.

"Andrew is my baby brother and his daddy is my daddy too. He shares Daddy with me and I share Daddy with him." The little girl explained making her pink teddy bear dance over her covers.

"Aurora, Andrew's daddy is your stepfather. I married Kurt after your daddy and I divorced. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"No…Where's Daddy, I need a hug from him before I can go to sleep. Get Daddy, Mommy." The three year old replied completely missing what her mother was trying so hard to explain to her.

"Paul Levesque, the man who visited you today when you were coloring, he's your daddy, sweetheart. He went home to Greenwich but you'll see him soon. He loves you very much and would like you to call him 'Daddy' next time you see him. Okay?"

"Daddy, I want a hug." Aurora said as soon as she saw Kurt move into the small doorway to her little section of the bus. He was holding his son who was sound asleep in his arms. Angle was once again dressed in his suit for he had changed back into it after his match in the main event.

"I thought you talked to her." Angle said to his wife as he slowly moved into the room. It had been decided that Stephanie was going to try again to explain to her daughter that Kurt wasn't her father like he was Andrew's.

"I did, she just isn't getting it. Maybe we should try again when Paul's actually here too." Steph suggested as she got up from where she was seated on the edge of the small bed.

"Here, you put the little guy down and I'll finish tucking in Princess Aurora." Kurt said in a much quieter voice and she leaned into his wife so that she could take their son from him.

Steph smiled quickly accepting the baby into her arms. As soon as she was holding him, she could tell that he needed a diaper change. Her smile slowly faded and was replaced with a look that told her husband that she was wise to him.

"You're handing him over to me because you know he needs a diaper change." Stephanie told her husband as she felt her baby's diapered bottom while he slept in her arms.

"It's late and you can change him quicker than I ever could. So while you're changing him, I'll finish tucking in Aurora. Is that okay, honey?" Kurt asked raising his eyebrows as he awaited his wife's approval of his logic. He was a bit surprised by her assuming that he only gave her their child because he wanted to shirk his responsibilities as a father and not change a diaper.

"Yeah, you're right. Aurora was just asking for you to tuck her in so it works out well." Steph replied allowing her smile to return to her face. With that said, Steph left Aurora's small courters and took the baby into the part of the bus that her and Kurt slept in.

"Okay little girl, it's sleepy time now. Do you have everything you need for bedtime? You've got your bear and you're nice and warm in your bed." Kurt pointed out as he tucked the covers around Aurora after the child put her teddy bear under the covers and next to her on her pillow.

"Good night sweetie." Kurt whispered giving Aurora a quick peck on her forehead before getting up to leave.

"You forgot to give Baby Bear a kiss too." Aurora quickly said causing her stepfather to stop before he left her.

Angle smiled, letting out a chuckle after he shook his head and walked back to the bed. He leaned back down and gave the stuffed animal a kiss to make his stepdaughter happy. She let out a little laugh before reaching her arms out to hug Kurt around his broad neck.

"Okay, night-night, princess." Kurt replied after Aurora let go of him and he was able to stand back up and leave the room.

"Night-night, Daddy." Aurora replied before closing her eyes. Her referring to him as her father caused Kurt to pause right outside of her small room for a moment before he joined Stephanie in their bedroom on the luxury bus.

"She's still calling me her daddy." Kurt reported to Stephanie as soon as he entered the bedroom where Steph had Andrew lying on their bed and was finishing up changing him.

"I know, she doesn't understand when I try to explain it to her." Steph told him while she kept her eyes on her eleven month old who now seemed wide awake from the diaper change and was now sucking on a pacifier while he looked up at his mother with his beautiful blue eyes.

"I know it's wrong for her to call me her father but I can't help but feel good that she thinks of me as her parent. I love her like she's my own flesh and blood." Kurt confessed as he sat down on the bed

"I know you do. And Aurora loves you. But it is still not right for her to be calling you her father." Steph answered back as she finished putting the baby's pajamas back on him.

"You're right. I wouldn't want Kyra and Kody calling another man their daddy." Angle said honestly as he watched Andrew sit up and then crawl further up the bed toward the pillows.

"Yeah but you are also more involved in your children's lives. I'm so frustrated with Paul. He's such a narcissist, there's no getting through to him."

"Let's stop talking about him. What did you think of the match tonight?" Kurt asked changing the subject quickly from his wife's ex husband. The man had already gotten her upset earlier in the day, there was no sense in her bringing him back up to only get upset again.

"I still don't like the idea of you working with Jeff Hardy. I know you want to give him a rub but with his drug history and his dangerous style of wrestling, I'm worried about you." Stephanie explained moving further onto the bed to stay by her child who was now moving the pillows from the bed as he let out a few strings of babbling out from around his pacifier.

Kurt let out a sigh as he too moved onto the bed but on the other side. This wasn't the first time he had heard of her objections to giving Jeff Hardy a push of any kind. Angle knew that she didn't have any use for him after he no showed because he was found to be under the influence at an airport. She didn't feel that Hardy belonged in the ring with him.

"Steph, I'll be fine." Angle said acting like what she continued to harp about was really no big deal and she was over reacting.

"I know you say that but I know you. You're going to give it your all to make Hardy look good at the expense of your body. I don't want you doing that anymore."

Kurt listened quietly with a smile as he watched his baby pick up each one of the decorative pillows and throw it off the bed letting out a playful laugh. Perhaps the extended nap Andrew took earlier accounted for him being unusually more active at this hour.

"I don't want you doing that to your body anymore. Ever since, you started your pro wrestling career in 1999 you've always fired on all cylinders and I even worried about you then but now it's different." Steph continued watching Kurt take the baby and sit him on his chest as he laid on his pillow next to his wife. He began to elevate his child over him making airplane noises that made Andrew laugh and kick out. Still Stephanie continued to express what she had to say despite her husband's attention being focused on their eleven month old.

"You're my husband and the father of our son. And Kurt, you're getting older." She said placing her hand on his face, making her look over at him. When he finally did, she gave him a look that told him that she was being completely serious and was genuinely concerned about that pay-per-view match coming up.

Angle let out a long sigh as he closed his eyes after he brought the baby back down to his chest. He didn't like it when his age was brought up as something that would hold him back. It never when he was in TNA and it wouldn't now.

"Steph, I know what you're saying, okay? I'm sorry, baby, but I don't know any other way to perform without giving it my all. That's who I am. That's why Dad puts so much stock in me. He knows I will go out there and make him money…make us money." Kurt replied taking her hand in his as the baby got off his chest and crawled over between them and laid down on his stomach.

"Money is not what's most important here, you are. I want you to promise me that you'll be careful when you are working with Jeff Hardy; no unnecessary risks." Steph whispered with intensity as she leaned toward her husband locking eyes with him. He shifted closer to her, so that where their baby laid was the only space between them.

"I swear to you that I won't do anything that I can't handle." Angle whispered back bringing his hand to her face. They had clearly been reduced to whispering because the baby was well on his way to settling down for the night.

Steph had to wonder what exactly Kurt thought he could handle. She knew how confident he was in his ability to put on five star matches. Her husband was the best shoot wrestler in the business. However, he was going to be in the ring with a man who Stephanie considered to be a bit of a loose cannon. Kurt didn't see that in Jeff though. Angle had known Hardy from his development days at the Dory Funk Jr. Dojo camp where they along with others trained. Steph knew that Kurt had it in his mind that he was going to work the match, but at least he was promising her that he would take care.

Stephanie closed her eyes bringing her forehead to her husband's. Their noses touched before Angle flashed a smirk and pressed his lips firmly against hers. Steph let out a sigh, bringing her right hand up to her husband's face as she kissed him back, matching his passion. Slowly, Angle shifted on the bed, carefully moving over to Steph's side without disturbing their sleeping baby that had been between them. Their kiss continued while Kurt lied down in between his wife's legs as she loosened his tie before removing it from around his large neck and throwing it to the floor. Her fingers then fiddled with his dress shirt buttons while he unzipped the side zipper of her dress pants.

"Wait, let's put the baby in the crib before we start." Steph said placing a hand on her husband's bare chest holding him back from getting right down to business. They had now shed all their clothing and were just about to make love.

Angle nodded and moved off of her so that she could pick up the sleeping baby and place him gently in the crib right by the bed. Andy only stirred slightly when his mother placed him in the crib. Kurt got to his feet at approached his wife watching her cover the baby with a light blanket. He was somewhat impatient and was ready for her to lay down with him. Steph smiled when she turned around to meet him, taking Kurt into her arms as they showered each other with kisses before getting back into bed together.

Paul sat on top of one of the lighting box carts backstage at the SmackDown tapings. He was still stewing over what had happened yesterday. Levesque didn't even bother telling his best friend, Shawn, about the latest developments in his battle with the McMahon-Angle family. Sure his best friend would be there to support him, but Paul was tired of getting the Christian take on everything that said he had to turn the other cheek and only see the good in them. That was the last thing he wanted to hear right now. There was nothing wrong with Shawn's strong faith in God but Paul didn't want to see the makeshift sunny side in the shitty situation he was now in with his ex-wife and child.

He was still trying to wrap his mind around the fact that his own daughter was calling another man her daddy. And if that wasn't enough to trouble his thoughts, he still had the mental picture of Stephanie sucking face with Kurt Angle backstage at the RAW arena. She had never kissed him with such fervor in public as she had kissed Angle. Seeing her in his arms, holding him tight, only made the fact that he had lost her all the more real to him.

It had been a year since the divorce was finalized. What an agonizing year it was for him. While Steph had easily moved on with the Olympic Gold medalist as if nothing had been lost, Levesque was still morning the loss of their marriage and the life that they once had together. Sure, to Stephanie, being his wife was the past and she didn't choose to dwell on it since she now had a new child and a new husband. Paul, however, was left alone, having to go on with his same life but without her. Paul had remembered the very hallway he was sitting in. He remembered standing in it with Stephanie one night before a show. It had been before they were even married. They were still dating but already knew they were in love. Levesque could recall making stupid jokes while Stephanie was performing her backstage duties. He used to be able to make her smile and laugh. There had been a time where it was so easy to please her. It had been the events of the last year of their marriage that had turned her heart to stone against him. Paul could only hope that it wasn't forever.

"Paul?"

"What?" Levesque snapped back instinctively after hearing his name called out of nowhere. The voice had brought him back to reality from his daydream state of thinking about the past. He was annoyed by the interruption.

The moment Paul looked up to see from where the voice was coming from, his demeanor changed. Right in front of him was a beautiful blonde that he had come to know quite well over the past years since WWE's acquisition of WCW.

"Oh, hey Torrie, what are you doing here? I thought you retired from wrestling?" Paul asked in a much softer and kinder voice. He was somewhat embarrassed that he had snapped out at her.

"John Laurinaitis called me up and told me that the creative team had come up with a non-wrestling on screen role for me on SmackDown. It's some role as general manager assistant or something. With the divorce from Peter, I just jumped at the chance to get some steady work besides the clothing line I started." Miss Wilson explained with a smile before focusing the subject back on Paul.

"Are you okay? You look so sad sitting here by yourself." Wilson pointed out. She had been talking by when she had seen Levesque sitting there alone like he was in some sort of a grief stricken trance. The look on his face showed that he was hurting about something.

"I'll live. Stephanie's just making my life really difficult."

"Yeah, I heard about your divorce last year. I'm really sorry that it didn't work out between you two. I haven't spoken to Steph in such a long time." Torrie replied showing that she was genuinely sorry about the end of the Levesques' marriage.

"Stephanie is doing just fine now. She got pregnant, divorced me, and married Kurt Angle; in that order too. She took Aurora and moved on with her life like I was nothing to her." Paul said looking away from Torrie as she spoke about his hardship.

"Aw, poor Aurora, I'm sure she misses you very much. I know firsthand how hard a divorce can be. I can't imagine having children and going through it. I'm going to be on SmackDown for at least the next few months. I just want you to know that if you need anyone to talk to, I'm here." Torrie told Levesque as she placed her hand on his arm to show the sincerity of her offer.

"Thanks for the offer. I'll keep that in mind." Paul said giving Torrie Wilson a weak smile after his eyes glanced at her hand that was still on his arm. His smile stayed on his face as they said their goodbyes and Torrie disappeared down the hall.

She had been the first superstar, other than Shawn of course, to reach out to him since the divorce. It was well known that Paul wasn't exactly the most well liked, even before his marriage ended to Stephanie, but with the dissolve of the marriage it seemed that any put on respect the boys in the back had for him had also disappeared. As if he was a nameless jobber before he got involved with Vince McMahon's daughter.

Levesque could not help but wonder if Torrie was just being polite because she had been such a good friend of him and Stephanie when they were married. She was more of Stephanie's friend than his yet she seemed concerned about him.

Paul's cell phone began to ring causing him to remove it from his the back pocket of his jeans and look at its display. Surprisingly, it was his ex-wife, Stephanie. Why was she calling him? How strange was it that he had just finished talking with her friend before she called?

"Hey." He said right after opening the phone and bringing it to his ear.

"Hi Paul, it's Stephanie."

"Yeah, I know. What do you want?" Paul asked wanting to get right down to the reason she was calling him.

"Listen, Kurt is going to Pittsburgh to pick up his kids tomorrow so he can have them until Friday. I thought you could come over then and visit with Aurora. I think it's important that she spends some time with you away from Kurt but with me there too. Having her just go off with you hasn't been working out well. So, can you come over to see her tomorrow around noon?" Steph asked putting her offer out there.

"Yeah sure, I'm flying back to Connecticut tomorrow morning."

"Okay good. So I'll see you tomorrow then. Take care."

"Thanks, you too, bye." Paul replied before ending the call.

It had been the first time in a long time that Paul remembered having an entire conversation that was completely civil between him and Stephanie. He was somewhat surprised that Steph was inviting him to her home after their confrontation the day before. Why all of a sudden was she now being so civil to him? Well whatever the reason was, Levesque was quick to accept her offer. She was giving him the opportunity to visit his daughter at her home and best of all, Kurt Angle was going to be no where around to interfere in his time with his daughter. It was going to be him, Steph, and Aurora; Just the three of them, like when they were a family.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment. **

Chapter Six

Paul stood in the driveway for a moment taking in the sight of the Angle home. He had been quick to jump in his Hummer the moment he got home from his flight back from Ohio. Stephanie told him to come by at noon but he was already there at eleven o'clock. What difference did an hour make? This was the first time that his ex-wife openly invited him to her new home to visit with her and their daughter. It was all he could think about since the moment he finished speaking with Steph yesterday. Levesque was determined to put his best foot forward going into this visit with his child and former wife.

Unlike the last time Paul approached the front door of the Angle household, he was wearing a smile and had a certain level of confidence. He knew that he had a reason for being at their house and best of all; Steph wanted him to be there. Levesque was also comfortable because he was sure that it would be Stephanie who would be answering the door after he rang the bell, so he did so without hesitation.

His smile along with his high spirits faded instantly when he saw Kurt Angle standing on the other side of the front door. Kurt was wearing a nice dress shirt and a pair of jeans and he was looking back at Paul for a moment before he spoke, breaking what was an awkward silence.

"Hey, you're an hour early. Come on in." Angle said stepping aside so that his wife's former husband could come into his house. His voice was surprisingly inviting and Paul gave a slight nod and came into the house.

Angle knew he was coming over? Paul had gotten the impression that this visit that he and Stephanie had agreed upon was between them only. Levesque had even liked the idea of Kurt not knowing about him coming over to visit. After all, it didn't concern Angle, so there was no reason for him to know about it. Why did Steph tell him? Did Steph lie to him on the phone? Was Kurt going to be there during his visit?

"Where's Stephanie?" Paul quickly asked while he followed Kurt down the hallway toward the kitchen. He was looking in all directions as he spoke. He caught sight of the few pictures that they had of both Aurora and their baby together hanging on the wall and even a few of the Angles themselves.

"She's putting the kids down for a nap. Can I get you something to drink?" Kurt said as soon as he walked into the kitchen with Paul trailing behind him.

"No." Levesque replied in a dull tone of voice as he plopped down in one of the chairs at the kitchen table.

Paul was no in no mood to make nice with Kurt Angle. Despite his polite perfect host façade, Levesque knew that this was just another attempt for Kurt to ruin his chances of connecting with Stephanie again. Just like on Monday when Kurt interrupted what was a tender hug between himself and his ex-wife. And now today, this visit was supposed to be a private one just between him, Steph, and their daughter. Angle had no business being there and he knew it. Him being nice and friendly was just to rub it all in.

It was Steph walking into the kitchen that caused a smile to slowly form on Paul's face. She looked gorgeous as always. She was wearing what looked like a comfortable outfit that perfectly showed of her great figure. She had lost weight since when they were married. Levesque thought that was odd since she just had a baby eleven months ago. His eyes scanned her face that wasn't made up but still looked perfect. He never had cared if she wore makeup or not, she was looked great to him. And her long flowing brown hair was pulled back in a neat ponytail. She flashed Paul a polite smile before making her way over to Kurt.

"The limo is here. I saw it when I was coming down the stairs." She told Kurt bringing her hands to his dress shirt as she fixed the collar on it which was a little twisted.

"Well I better take off." Kurt replied gazing lovingly at his wife before he placed his hands on either side of her hips and brought her closer to him. Angle's eyes darted quickly over to where Paul was still seated and then turned his attention back to his wife.

"Are you going to be okay?" Angle asked in a whisper bringing his forehead to hers. Paul was looking on in resentment. He knew the comment was because of him. As if Steph was in any danger being with him after Kurt left.

Steph let out a chuckle bringing her hands to her husband's face. She gave him a slight nod before laying a quick kiss upon his lips that made Paul hold his breath in. He couldn't help wish that it was him that Stephanie was giving her affection to. There was a time when he was, when she loved him exclusively.

"I'll have my cell on me. I love you."

"I love you too. Have a safe flight." Steph replied before giving him one more kiss.

"Thanks baby, I'll see you later tonight." Kurt replied removing himself from their embrace before grabbing his nearby luggage and exiting the house from the front door that Paul and entered from.

"Didn't we agree that you would come at noon?" Steph asked giving her ex-husband a puzzled look as soon as she heard the front door close.

"Yeah, well I came early. Did Angle know I was coming over here to visit you and Aurora?" Paul asked throwing his own question back at Steph who began cleaning off her baby's highchair.

"Yeah, he was fine with it. He wants Aurora to have time with you. And if she's most comfortable with you coming to the house, then that's fine." Steph explained as she began to scrub the highchair tray with the cloth that was already on it.

"I doubt he's fine with us spending time together. He just wants you to think that. He's a snake in the grass." Paul muttered causing Stephanie to roll her eyes.

"Kurt trusts me. He isn't paranoid like you were when we were married. Can we just leave my husband out of our discussion today? The reason I asked you to come in the afternoon is because Aurora would be finished with her nap and you could visit with her. That's why you are here." Steph told him as she finished cleaning the last spot of baby food off the high chair. She then brought the cloth to her kitchen sink and began rinsing it out.

"You know I'm not just here to see Aurora. You wanted to see me. Why else would you invite me over here when you're here and Kurt's off in Pittsburgh to pick up his kids? You don't have to be coy with me. You want me as much as I want you." Paul said in a sexy whisper as he approached his former wife and lovingly caressed her arm.

He wasn't holding anything back. It made no sense to Paul to tiptoe around his feelings for her. This was the first chance he had to tell her how he really felt since she married Angle. There were no obstacles between them that could get in the way of reconnecting and Levesque was going to take full advantage of this opportunity.

Steph smiled wide and let out a loud laugh before turning to look at the man that she had once believed was the love of her life. She found his views on how she felt about him comical. Paul was still being Paul. Everything was about him. Perhaps it was a mistake to invite him to the house. Maybe they should have met somewhere in public; though she could see the dangers in that as well. All Stephanie needed as an internet report spewing rumors of her cheating on her husband with her ex. As if going to the park or any other outing with her ex and her daughter would constitute affirmation of an affair.

"Paul, I think I'll be able to resist you." Steph said before letting out a few more strong chuckles.

"Yeah keep laughing about it. You're playing the same game of hard to get that you did in 1999. Well game on, Stephy." Levesque said with a smirk as he brought his hand to her face which Steph was quick to push away.

"This isn't a game. And I'm not leading you on, despite what your hell bent on fantasizing about. This isn't about us or you, Paul. You're here because Aurora needs to spend time with you. Don't get confused." Steph quickly replied getting in Paul's face as she spoke with sincerity.

"You may think you love, Angle but you don't. You're still in love with me. I can see it in your eyes every time I look into them. I know why you left me for him. I get it now. I understand how I was wrong and I'm ready to make it work this time. I never got a second chance. You were pregnant with his baby when you came back to me. I never got my chance to make it up to you. You've been married to this guy for almost a year now. Enough is enough and it's time for you to come home with me." Paul replied matching her tone.

"I don't know what else I can say to make you understand. Why is it so hard for you to believe that I could fall in love with someone else? Our marriage is over. I've moved on and you need to as well. You're a good looking guy. It shouldn't be hard for you to find company elsewhere. You sure had no problem doing so while we were still married." Stephanie said softly.

"I don't want to find company elsewhere. I haven't been with anyone since the divorce. I want to be true to you." Levesque professed causing Steph to shake her head.

"That's ironic. Only after we ended our marriage do you want to be faithful to me. That was all I wanted from you, Paul. For you to love me and our child…" She muttered, her eyes glassing over with tears.

Levesque inhaled sharply recognizing Stephanie's moment of weakness as an opportunity to make his move. His hazel eyes focused on her moist lips as he thought about the last time he had kissed them. It felt like it had been a life time but he could still remember her taste. He wet his lips quickly before he slowly began to lean in closing the space between their lips as he could see her eyes getting huge with disbelief. Andrew Vincent's could be heard from upstairs and at that moment, Steph quickly turned her head to cut off his advances before he was able to kiss her.

"The baby's awake." Stephanie announced stating the obvious as she quickly pushed Paul back and away from her before she left him standing there in the kitchen so she could run and tend to her youngest child.

"Little bastard…" Paul muttered under his breath the moment he was alone in the kitchen.

Levesque let out a long exhale. He couldn't believe how close he had gotten to kissing Stephanie. If it wasn't for that damn baby, she would have definitely kissed him. Who knows where that kiss would have led to? Now with the baby waking up, he knew he had lost his window of opportunity. It would be best to try and smooth things over with Steph when she returned. The interruption from that little brat probably caught her off guard and made her feel guilty about giving into her feelings for him.

"How's my little guy? Come to Mommy." Steph gushed as she approached Andrew who was standing in his crib hanging on to the rail. The sight of his mother caused the baby's crying to cease immediately. His wet mouth formed a smile while he held out his arms in preparation of his mother picking him up which she quickly did.

"Do you need to be changed? I think you do." Steph said carrying her son over to the nearby changing table.

"Mommy, baby brother's crying?" Aurora asked walking into the nursery while rubbing her eyes. The baby's crying must have woken her up from her nap.

"Yeah, he was crying because he woke up and needed his diaper changed. Hey, Aurora, guess what."

"What?" She replied getting up on a bench that was right by the changing table so she could see her brother being changed.

"Your daddy came to visit you today. He's down stairs. When I finish changing Andrew, we'll go downstairs and see him." Stephanie told her daughter as she quickly worked on changing her baby.

"Look at all this crap. Who dedicates an entire room to all their medals and trophies?" Paul said aloud when Steph walked into Kurt's trophy room with Andrew on her hip and Aurora following.

"Here's your daughter, Paul." Steph said not even bothering to acknowledge his comment about her husband's wrestling accomplishments that were displayed. Levesque had been so busy scrutinizing all of Kurt's awards that he didn't even notice that Aurora had entered the room with her.

"Hey baby girl, did that baby wake you up from your nap? Daddy came over to play and spend time with you." Paul said in a nice voice as he turned his attention to his daughter.

Aurora narrowed her eyes and then looked up at her mother to see if she was comfortable in his presence. She looked a bit confused. It was probably because Paul was referring to himself as her daddy when she thought of her daddy being Kurt. She didn't understand why this man was talking to her and in her house.

Steph thought it would be best if she moved everyone into the living room. She set Andrew down on the carpet floor with his toys. Aurora preferred being right by her little brother as Paul and Stephanie watched from the sofa.

"Hey, I'm sorry if you got uncomfortable earlier." Levesque said keeping his eye on his little girl as she made her baby brother stand up and walk across the room while holding her hand.

"Let's just forget it and concentrate on the kids. Aurora is great with Andy. She loves being a big sister. Andrew's still not all that steady on his feet but at least he's walking which is just fine since he'll be a year old next month." Steph commented changing the focus of their conversation to the children.

"What's that you've got there, Aurora?" Paul asked after he saw his child give her brother a plastic cup and spoon and herself one. She was starting to pretend to each something. He completely ignored Stephanie's comments about her second child.

"I'm having ice cream. Baby brother is too." The little girl answered back tipping her cup toward Levesque so that he could see the pretend ice cream in the cup, as if he would be able to really see it.

"Baby brother, you spilled your ice cream!" Aurora said in disapproval before letting out a giggle. Andrew had proceeded to take the cup his sister gave him and throw it across the room along with the plastic toy spoon.

"That ice cream looks really good. Will you fix me a cup?" Paul asked his daughter as he got off the sofa and sat down with her on the living room floor.

"Okay, what kind of ice cream do you want?" She asked holding her hands up flat and close to her shoulders.

"How about chocolate ice cream with fudge syrup?"

"Okay, do you want the sprinkles too? I have pink sprinkles…" Aurora replied smiling from ear to ear as her father played pretend with her.

"I don't know about pink sprinkles. How about green and black sprinkles? Those are Daddy's colors."

"Okay, I changed the colors and put them on." Aurora told him as she waved her hand over the cup and made a motion like she was sprinkling the topping on the imaginary ice cream.

"Oh thank you, it looks delicious. Does Mommy get an ice cream too?" Paul asked looking over at Steph who was sitting on the sofa smiling and watching her ex-husband interacting so nicely with their daughter.

"Yeah sure, Mommy, do you want some ice cream too?" Aurora asked sweetly holding up another plastic cup after she gave the one that had been in her hand to Paul.

"I would love some ice cream." Stephanie replied getting off the sofa and joining them on the living room floor.

"I put whip cream on your ice cream, Mommy." The child announced before she handed the cup over to her mother.

"Hey, why didn't I get any whipped cream on my ice cream?" Paul asked smiling big looking back and forth between Steph and Aurora.

"Here Daddy, here's your whipped cream." Steph said with a smile as she pretended to stick her finger in her ice cream and wipe the cream onto Paul's nose. This caused Aurora to burst out laughing.

"Mommy put the whip cream on your nose!" Aurora exclaimed with laughter crinkling her little nose up as her eyes squinted.

Andrew began to laugh as if to imitate his older half sister. He crawled into his mother's lap allowing her to hold him in her arms and watch the pretend play. Paul's eyes narrowed slightly as he noticed that Angle's baby crawling into Stephanie's arms caused her to turn her attention to him. She gave the baby a few kisses on his chubby cheek before looking back at Aurora with a smile. Watching Steph with the baby made Levesque want to divert h is eyes. The eleven month old definitely resembled his father and seeing Steph kissing on him nauseated Paul.

"Steph, doesn't that kid need to finish its nap?" Levesque asked trying to suggest that the baby be removed from his ex-wife's arms.

"No, he's fine. He'll take another one later today. Are you enjoying your ice cream, Daddy?" Steph asked putting the focus back on Aurora's make-believe game. She was continuing to call her ex-husband 'Daddy' hoping that Aurora would pick up on this.

"Yeah I am, Mommy, but I think I'm all full. Why don't you have the rest?" Paul replied as he proceeded to tip the cup upside down and place it on her head causing Aurora to howl with laughter.

The laughter was cut short when the sound of the front door opening and slamming closed was heard. Steph narrowed her eyes as she heard footsteps coming around from the kitchen close to the living room entrance. She wasn't expecting anyone to be visiting. Whoever it was, had to have a key because the house was locked up.

"Kurt?" Steph said aloud, her voice full of concern, as she saw her husband. He appeared to be upset about something. What was he doing back home? He was supposed to be flying to Pittsburgh to pick up his children. Angle didn't answer his wife. He opened the screen door to the back deck, walked out, and slammed it shut without even acknowledging her.

"Dadadada!" Andrew squealed aloud after seeing his daddy for only a moment. He grabbed the toy cup out of his mother's hands and brought it to his mouth to bite it.

"Daddy's home, but where did he go?" Aurora then asked putting her hands up as she strained her neck to try and see Angle who was on the back deck.

Levesque gave his ex-wife a look of distain after hearing his own child refer to Angle as her father yet again. This was a frustrating setback for him because the thought that he was finally connecting with his little girl again. She had been smiling and laughing with him just like she did as a baby. It was like he was getting his baby girl back. Angle showing back up ruined everything. What the hell was he doing back here already? He was supposed to be gone for the entire day.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Seven

"He looks upset about something. I hope everything's okay, he's supposed to be on his way to the airport." Stephanie said aloud as she quickly got to her feet and left the living room with a concerned look on her face. She had put Andy on the floor with his sister, leaving them behind with Paul as he looked on.

Aurora got to her feet and watched tentatively as her mother too disappeared outside on the back deck once she went through the screen sliding door. The three year old mirrored her mother's concern as she slowly moved toward the door.

"Aurora, stay here with me." Paul told his daughter in somewhat of a commanding voice. While he was giving his child an order, it didn't sound mean, yet it was firm.

"No…" She quickly replied dismissing his words as she ventured to the screen sliding door, reached up, and opened it.

Paul scowled in disapproval getting to his feet. Angle's son was busy pushing everything off the main coffee table in the living room and he didn't even notice that he was being left alone while Levesque walked toward the back door. Where he was standing at the screen door, he could easily hear and see what was transpiring between Stephanie and Kurt.

"Kurt, what's wrong? Why are you not on your way to Pittsburgh?" Stephanie asked approaching her husband. She placed her hand on his back as he stood leaning over the wooden rail of the deck. He was looking off into their backyard, not even turning to look at his wife.

"I was on my way to the airport when I got a call from Karen…" Kurt muttered not blinking once as if he was in a trance.

"Are the kids okay?" Steph asked taking a stab at the reason Kurt was so upset. Aurora finally stopped when she was in sight of her mother. She sat down on the deck and began to play with a few of her toys that were there.

"Karen changed her mind about allowing me to take them for the rest of the week…" Angle muttered. His voice was a bit hoarse as he spoke like he was fighting back crying. Levesque let out a silent snicker where he stood, he was good seeing Angle upset for a change.

"What? Why? You are their father! What gives her the right to tell you when you can see your own children?" Steph asked getting angry after hearing what her husband's former wife told him.

"She told me that she still didn't want Kyra and Kody around you. She still believes the lie that Paul pissed into her ear about us." Kurt replied. His reason put a huge smile on Paul's face. Knowing that he was the direct cause of Kurt's continued problems with his ex-wife made his day.

"Didn't you explain to her that we didn't get together until after your marriage to her was over? Karen had been nothing but nice to me, I would have never gotten involved with you if you were still with her. Does she know that?"

"I've tried explaining it all to her but she doesn't believe me. She finds it too coincidental that after Paul tells her we had an affair, I end up getting you pregnant and marrying you." Angle explained finally turning around to face his wife.

"Would it help if I called and talked to her?" Steph asked slightly turning her head to the side as she asked her husband. She wanted to do anything she could to help him see his children.

"I doubt it. She doesn't want me in the kids' lives. All she cares about is that million dollar alimony check and the child support every month." Angle said in a dull whisper before pausing for a moment to keep it together before he continued.

"What upsets me the most is when I think about what the kids think; Kody's only going to be three in October but Kyra, she probably thinks I don't care enough to see her and her brother…" Kurt said as a single tear ran down his face which he quickly wiped away before covering his sparkling green eyes with his hand.

Steph's face contorted as she looked upon her husband with empathy. Seeing the man she loved so upset really broke her heart. She knew how much his two children meant to him and hated to think that Karen's dislike for her was the reason why she was keeping his children from him. She quickly moved forward with her arms extended and took Angle into her arms for a loving embrace.

"Kyra knows you love her and Kody. You're a terrific father. Our baby loves you and so does my Aurora. Don't let Karen get to you. We all have made our mistakes in the past but you've learned from yours and you're a better person now then you were when you were with her." Steph whispered to him in between the few tender kisses she gave to his lips.

By this time, the smug smile that had been plastered on Paul's face was gone as he watched his former wife lovingly tending to Kurt Angle. She sounded so caring and loving when she spoke to him. She was so understanding and comforting. Why didn't she treat him like that? Why hadn't Stephanie seen the transformation he had during the time they had been apart. Paul had changed for the better and learned from his mistakes but she didn't see that.

"We can't undo what happened in the past. If Karen chooses to believe that lie then that's her problem." Stephanie added while she ran her fingertips down the side of his face to his jaw.

"I wouldn't change a thing. Falling in love with you was worth it all. I love you Stephy."

Paul rolled his eyes. He couldn't believe she was falling for Angle's corny lines. Could the guy be anymore cliché? Levesque had professed his love for here earlier in the kitchen and she had laughed at him thinking he's pathetic. Angle now does it in a way that had no creative thought or spontaneity and she smiles.

"I love you too." Steph replied smiling big as their eyes locked. Angle began to slowly move in for a kiss. Jealous anger began to build inside of Paul as he watched Stephanie meet Angle's lips with hers when he only leaned in half way.

It took Paul every ounce of self control that he had not to introduce his fist to Angle's face. Every single muscle in his body was tense while he watched the Angles' kiss turn passionate with Kurt's tongue slivering into Steph's mouth like a snake which Stephanie met with hers. This kiss was meant for him. He would have gotten it if it wasn't for that annoying baby crying that made Steph feel guilty about her love for him. Paul knew he needed to get her focus off of Angle and their kiss. Perhaps it was time to extend them the same courtesy.

Levesque slowly retreated from the screen door and went back into the living room. He saw that Andrew had climbed onto the sofa and was now standing on it with his hands grasping the back of it to keep himself steady. Paul sat down next to where the baby was standing. Andy's face changed from indifferent to a happy smile. The eleven month old let out a few lines of gibberish from his wet smiling mouth as he bounced a little bit on the sofa. Levesque's eyes darted to the living room entrances at both sides of the room. He was making sure that no one was around. Stephanie and Kurt were both still out on the back deck with Aurora. In one quick motion Paul used his hand to push the baby backward. The baby fell from the sofa and landed on his back, hitting his head on the carpet floor with a thud. Andrew let out a strong wail that made his whole body shake. Just like Paul knew it would, it caused Stephanie to stop kissing Kurt and come running in to tend to her crying baby.

"The kid took a header right off the sofa. He's a little clumsy I guess." Levesque commented nonchalantly as Steph scooped up her crying child into her arms. Angle walked in with Aurora following behind. He too was worried about his son.

"He fell off the sofa. Kurt, do you think he's okay?" Steph asked turning to her husband so that he could check the crying baby for injury.

"Yeah, he's okay. I think he just scared himself." Kurt replied cupping the back of his son's head with his hand while Stephanie examined the baby for any forming bruises. Andy finally began to settle down finding comfort in his mother's arms.

"What happened to baby brother? He fell down? Mommy, did he fall down? Mommy? Did Andy fall down and get hurted?" Aurora inquired tugging on her mother's pant leg to get her attention as she wondered by her little half brother had been crying.

"Your brother fell down and hurt himself. It was an accident but he's okay now." Stephanie replied answering her daughter as she rocked her son in her arms, rubbing his little back.

Angle's eyes focused on Levesque who was still sitting on the sofa with a bit of a smirk on his face while he watched Stephanie making over her young child. It didn't take Paul long to realize that Kurt was staring right at him. The two locked eyes; both of them giving each other a cold stare. Angle didn't say a word. It was like he knew that Paul was responsible for Andrew's fall. For him, it was too much of a coincidence that his son would fall off the sofa when Paul was the only one in the room with him.

Stephanie looked up and looked at her husband's face. She could then see the building tension between him and her ex-husband. She looked back and forth between the two of them a few times before deciding to open her mouth and speak.

"Paul, we've had an eventful day here, I think it would be best if we cut this visit short. You'll be seeing Aurora this weekend for the pay-per-view. I'll show you out." Steph said quickly, ready to get Paul out of the house and defuse the building tension.

"He can show himself out, Steph." Angle told his wife stopping her from going to lead Paul to the front door.

He took his wife's hand in his as soon as she walked back to him. Angle was still staring at Paul while he placed his arm around Steph bringing her closer to him. He was doing to him the exact same thing Paul had done to him when Levesque came home and found Angle visiting Stephanie. Just like Paul hadn't wanted his wife showing Angle out, now Kurt didn't want Stephanie, now his wife, showing him out.

"Bye princess. I'll see you thinks weekend." Paul told his three year old as he gave her a pat on the head before showing himself to the home's front door.

Levesque thought that maybe Stephanie would come and say goodbye to him as he slowly walked toward his Hummer that was still parked in the wide driveway. He was deliberately moving slower than usual trying to create an opportunity for her to come out and see him off. Sitting in the driver seat of the Hummer, Paul lowered his head in disappointment. She wasn't coming. He turned the ignition of the truck starting it up and then rolled the windows down.

"Paul wait! Don't leave!" Stephanie hollered as she ran bare foot out her front door, across her sidewalk, and right up to the Hummer.

He was all smiles happy that she was going to be seeing him off after all despite her husband telling her not to. It reminded him of the days when they were married and she would sometimes see him off in their driveway. Maybe he was going to get a goodbye kiss just like he would then.

"You forgot your wallet. It must have fallen out of your pocket when you were on the floor playing with Aurora. Didn't you notice it was missing?" Stephanie asked holding out his leather wallet for him to take.

"No, I guess I didn't…Thanks…" Paul muttered his voice showing his disappointment by the huge let down. She wasn't saying good bye to him after all. As good as he was feeling just a second ago when he thought she was going to profess her love for him, he now felt terrible seeing her stand there with one hand on her hip holding his wallet out for him to take with the other.

She nodded as he took his wallet. Once he had it, she quickly turned her back on him and began walking back toward her front door. Paul wanted to say something; anything to get her to turn around and come back to him. He didn't know what he could say. What was it going to take to let her know that he still was in love with her? She acted as if they never had almost shared a kiss earlier. Steph never even said goodbye to him. Paul just sat there and watched his former wife as she walked back up to her front porch, opened the door, and went back inside. It wasn't until he could no longer see her that he put the Hummer in reverse and slowly began to back out of the driveway.

Paul had thought that this visit with his daughter and ex-wife would actually allow him to become closer to them again and feel better about not being with them anymore but it had the opposite effect on him. He actually felt worse now. The precious small amount of time they spent together only reminded him of what he lost a year ago. Resigning to the fact that she was now Kurt Angle's wife and had a new life was not something that Paul was not going to do. There was no way he was going to simply sit back and allow the love of his life and his only child be taken away by another man. If Stephanie wanted to play hard to get, then he was going to make a play of his own.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Eight

"He pushed Andrew down." Kurt said as if he knew without a shadow of a doubt that Paul had been responsible for his youngest child's fall earlier in the day.

Angle was standing in the nursery watching his wife who was sitting in a glider feeding their child. Stephanie was feeding Andy breast milk via a bottle while having him positioned close to her bosom. This was the process of weaning Andrew. It had to be done gradually because he still very much enjoyed nursing.

"Paul wouldn't do that. Despite all the faults he has, he would never hurt a child." Steph replied looking way from her son and up at Angle who leaned back against the light blue wall of the nursery room. Kurt cocked his head to the side and gave his wife a look to show his uncertainty about her assumption about Levesque.

"I know I told you that I blamed him for my miscarriage but I told him that in anger. He never wanted me to miscarry and he certainly wouldn't ever hurt Aurora." She added.

"I don't know, Steph, our child maybe a different story. I really don't want him at the house anymore. Set up another place for him to see Aurora." Angle told his wife as he placed his hands in his pockets.

"The whole reason I invited him to the house in the first place was so that Aurora would be comfortable being around him while I'm there and she is in her own house. I guess I could work it out so that Paul could come and see Aurora and Mom and Dad's. I could take her over there and stay with her while he visits." Steph suggested while gently rubbing her baby's back just after he finished the last of the bottle.

"Well that could work. We've got our anniversary coming up. Your parents are going to have to kids. I know Vince will keep an eye on Andrew and I'm sure Aurora will feel comfortable having your mom there." Kurt said with a smile before slowly walking over to his wife.

"Yeah it will work out. I can't believe we've been married for almost a year now. It seems like just yesterday I divorced Paul and we married."

"The year went by fast. It's been great. I wish you were the mother of all my children. I hate that I have to still deal with Karen. You're everything she isn't." Angle whispered lovingly as he confessed his true feelings to his wife while leaning down close to her and the baby.

"Everything happened for a reason, honey. Kyra and Kody wouldn't be who they are if you didn't have them with Karen. I'm going to call her and see if she will agree to meet me for lunch on the weekend. We're going to be in Pennsylvania anyway for the pay-per-view. If we can all get on the same page, it's only going to be easier to get more time with your kids." Steph explained giving her husband a loving gaze.

Stephanie knew it was about time that she finally had a talk with Karen. Their relationship used to be very friendly until Paul called Karen and told her the lie that ended up turning into reality after Kurt and Karen's marriage was over. In Karen's mind though, Stephanie had betrayed her friendship by sleeping Kurt and getting pregnant with his baby. Steph didn't know how she was going to explain it all to Karen. Perhaps it would be best if she just let the past be the past and look toward rebuilding a new relationship with her, this time as the stepmother of Karen's children; whatever it was going to take for Karen to stop giving Kurt such a hard time about seeing his children. She could handle this herself. There was no need to involve Kurt in this lunch meeting since he already had enough on his plate with his upcoming pay-per-view match with Jeff Hardy.

"Steph, you don't have to trouble yourself with trying to reason with Karen. She's my problem to deal with. I don't want you adding anymore unneeded stress to your life. You already work so hard for the company while taking care of the kids." Kurt told her bringing his hand to her face to caress it.

"No I want to do this. I know how much Kody and Kyra mean to you. I see how much you miss them and I want to help because I'm the reason Karen won't let you see them." Stephanie whispered lowering her head so that her husband could no longer look into her eyes.

"It's not your fault, sweetheart. Karen's just being a bitch and using our marriage as a justification for her bullshit. Don't ever think that us being together did anything but enhance my life. Without you I would have been miserable. I love you." Kurt whispered lifting her chin up with his hand before he moved in and kissed her lips with his. Steph's hand met Angle's face while they kissed; his words reassuring her that their decision to be together was the right one.

"Hey, how are you doing? I haven't heard from you in a while. What's going on?" Shawn said, his voice coming out of Paul's cell phone the moment Levesque answered the phone call.

Paul was sitting alone in his dark living room with his cell phone pressed up against his ear. The plasma television, only a few feet away from him, was on but low in volume. Until the phone call from Michaels, he had been sitting there completely zoned out. He didn't even know what was on the television, nor did he care.

"My life is shit right now. I have nothing now. I lost Stephanie to that son of a bitch, Angle, and my daughter is following her mother. I can feel myself slowly losing my sanity because of this. Steph and Aurora are all I think about. I don't know what I'm going to do if I can't get them back." Paul told his best friend. He was finally speaking exactly what was on his mind to his friend regardless of what Shawn was going to reply to him with. At this moment, he just needed to tell someone.

"Stephanie has moved on with her life. Aurora will always be your daughter and she loves you, but you need to let Steph be happy in her new marriage. Stephanie and Kurt have been married for coming up on a year now and they even have a child together. You have to respect that, no matter how hard it is for you." Shawn told him. Levesque started to shake his head while Michaels listed the truths about Stephanie's new life that he wasn't ready to accept.

"Speaking of their baby, I did something today that if I was in my right mind, I would never even dream of doing…" Paul confessed to his DX buddy in a low voice. He was almost embarrassed to continue and tell his friend what he did.

"I pushed that baby off the sofa." Levesque finally admitted which in turn caused a long pause of silence from the other line.

"Why would you do something like that? You're not that kind of a person to take your anger and frustration out on a little innocent child. You're a father, you would never harm Aurora. That little baby never did anything to anyone." Shawn lectured obviously disapproving of Paul's actions.

"I don't know what made me do it. He was standing on the sofa right next to where I was sitting. I was looking at his face and I saw how much he resembled Angle. And then I remembered the feeling I felt the day Stephanie told me that her unborn child wasn't mine. That child who was now standing before me and even smiled at me as his father was making out with my Stephanie only a several feet away. Something inside of me just snapped. It was like an out of body experience. I shoved the baby. It didn't take a lot of force; he wasn't that steady on his feet to begin with. Seeing him cry on the floor was like I was seeing Kurt Angle cry in pain and I loved it. It wasn't until Stephanie came in upset to console the kid that I realized what I did." Paul explained remembering the event that had transpired earlier that day.

"I wanted to apologize to Steph right then but I couldn't bring myself to do it. She thought that the baby just lost its balance. I let her think that." He added.

"You need to pray and ask for God's forgiveness. Pray for him to give you clarity and help you through this hard time. He will help you see that life is going to go on for you even without Stephanie. There are more women out there and God will guide you to who is right for you." Shawn preached.

"You know what, Shawn. I really don't need a sermon right now. I don't need you to tell me that I should just let Stephanie go and move on to someone else. I had a great fucking life when I was with Steph. Am I just supposed to forget about that and cut my losses and let Kurt Angle swoop in and take everything that was mine? Fuck that! I refuse to roll over and die despite how much it would delight Vince and the rest of his cronies."

"Paul, you should hear yourself. You're sounding like a man who is completely out of touch with reality. You are a good man. If you just take a step back from the situation, you'll realize that you're just making yourself miserable dwelling on the past. You should be happy to have your health and a beautiful healthy daughter." Shawn pointed out to him. He was being brutally honest with his friend because he knew it was important that he told him this.

"There's no way that my life can ever be back to good if I'm not with Stephanie… I'll get her back…I know I will…"


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Nine

Stephanie quickly zipped up the large powdered blue diaper bag that sat on the kitchen counter while balancing Andrew on her hip. She then turned her attention to her leather work satchel that was nearby. Steph placed her laptop carefully inside it using only one had before zipping it up. Kurt was loading the few duffle bags they were bringing with them on their luxury bus as well as getting Aurora settled inside of it with an early morning snack and a movie. It was Saturday morning and they were just getting ready to travel to Philadelphia Pennsylvania where the Night of Champions PPV was being held tomorrow.

Steph took a moment to think before she grabbed hold of the cordless phone that was sitting in its cradle in the kitchen. Setting the phone down on the kitchen counter for a moment, she then pulled her PDA out of her back pocket and quickly found the number she was looking for in her extensive contact database. Andrew babbled a few lines of consonances while stuffing three of his fingers into his month as he looked up at his mother who began dialing the number on the home phone.

"Okay, shh, Mommy's on the phone." Steph told her infant son as he let out a few playful squeals placing his wet fingers into her brown flowing locks of hair while nuzzling close to her.

"Hi Karen, it's Stephanie. Listen, I was hoping we could get together for dinner tonight. I'm going to be in Pennsylvania this weekend for a PPV and I could manage to make it over to Pittsburgh by tonight." Stephanie told her husband's former wife getting right to the point of why she was calling her.

"No I don't think so. I really have nothing to say to you." Karen quickly replied in a tone of voice that made it clear that she was steadfast in her decision.

"I wanted to talk to you about Kurt and his visitation rights. Kurt has every right to see his children and I think he needs to be given opportunities to do so." Steph said in her professional tone of voice hoping that Karen would realize that she meant business.

"I really don't care what you think, Stephanie. What's going on between me and my ex-husband is none of your business. Just because you're Kurt's new wife, doesn't mean that you have any say about my children." The former Mrs. Angle said back with a bitchy tone of voice that made Stephanie want to reach through the phone and slap her.

Stephanie was determined to keep her cool when dealing with Karen. Nothing good would come out of a screaming match between them. If anything, it was going to make it even harder for Kurt to see his children. She wasn't going to do that to her husband. Perhaps she could reason with her. After all, before Paul pissed in Karen's ear about her and Kurt, she was as nice as could be. Maybe she could explain Kurt's position to Karen.

"I'm not trying to get into your business. I just can't help but see how much my husband misses two of his children. I know that you have your opinion of me that I will probably never be able to change but we should at least try and be civil to one another for the sake of Kyra and Kody. The PPV is at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia tomorrow. Kurt would love to see his kids if you could bring them there around noon." Stephanie said pressing the phone into her shoulder as she used her hands to move her baby to her other hip because the he was trying to grab the phone from her hand. Being moved to the other hip caused Andy to whine and squirm signaling his desire to be put down which Steph promptly did.

"I'll consider it…" Karen finally said after a brief moment of silence. Then Stephanie heard a click followed by a dial tone.

"That bitch just hung up on me." Steph said aloud to herself. Her eyes were wide in shock as she took the phone away from her ear and looked at it. She hit the off button before putting the phone back in the charging cradle.

"Where do you think you're going, Mister?" Steph asked her baby boy as she quickly walked across the kitchen to grab him before he speed crawled into the living room. While Andrew was still a bit wobbly on his feet, he had definitely mastered the art of crawling.

"Is this the last of the bags, babe?" Kurt asked helping his wife with the two bags as soon as she approached with Andrew in tow. She had the diaper bag hanging over her shoulder via the long strap while she used her free hand to carry her work satchel.

"Yeah this is it. Did you get Aurora all settled in?" Steph asked following Angle onto their bus as soon as he took her satchel and the diaper bag from her.

"Yeah, the princess is on her throne." Kurt replied motioning with his thumb to where Aurora was sitting. Kurt had made her a comfy seat nestled in between a few large pillows. She was sitting there completely at ease while she watched her favorite Dora the Explorer DVD with her favorite pink sunglasses on. When she took notice of her mother, she used one hand to pull her sun glasses down from her eyes.

"Hi Mommy." Aurora said cheerfully showing her little pearly white teeth as she smiled up at her mother.

"Hi sweetheart, oh honey, you don't have to wear those sunglasses, we're inside the bus." Steph explained as she smiled back at her daughter while the three year old put the sunglasses back on.

"I tried to explain that to her but she insists on wearing them. I'm going to go tell the driver we're ready to push out. Do you want to get the baby settled in? We should be set diaper wise, there's still some huggies in the bedroom by the crib." Kurt reported to Steph.

"Oh okay, hey Kurt, I called Karen and she's considering bringing Kyra and Kody to the PPV." Steph told Angle as he was about to go down the steps and out the bus. He paused and turned back to face his with. She had been hoping that he would be happy about the news but he didn't look optimistic.

"I'm not going to hold my breath, but thank you though for trying, sweetheart." Kurt told his wife giving her a weak smile before leaving the luxury bus.

"Who are you texting?" Steph asked Kurt after she saw him pull out his cell phone and begin to hit the keypad with his two large thumbs.

They were well into their trip to Philadelphia. Both Andrew and Aurora were napping so it was just Kurt and Stephanie in their sitting area. They had been watching a movie when Angle had reached for his cell phone.

"Vince, I want to talk to him about the match tomorrow. I talked with Hardy last night and we both think him going over is a better idea." Kurt explained to Steph not taking his eyes off his cell phone screen as he continued to push the keypad.

"But Kurt, I thought we were going to have you take the belt off of Jericho next month." Stephanie said looking puzzled by her husband's new creative direction he and Jeff Hardy were proposing.

"I'd rather work with some of the young guys. It will keep things fresh on the show while at the same time help elevate our young guys. Besides, Jericho defending against Jeff Hardy sounds like a great SummerSlam main event. I know Chris wants to go back to being a heel so it works perfectly for having a babyface Jeff Hardy going for the gold against heel Y2J." Kurt explained finally looking away from his cell phone to look at his wife. Just before Steph could object to her husband's reasoning for the creative direction of his character, his cell phone rings.

"It's Vince." Kurt tells her before quickly hitting the green send button on his phone and then bringing it to his ear.

"Hey Dad….So you're okay with it? Yeah, Jeff is fine with it, we talked…Yeah, I'm sure that it's what I want…Yeah, I want to work with one of our up and coming guys….Yeah I have a few names in mind but we can talk about that later...Yeah the match tomorrow will be planned out to perfection, don't worry about that…"

Stephanie sat there quiet and she just listened to her husband chat with her father. While she didn't agree with Kurt wanting to get out of the WWE title picture, the fact that her father and Kurt got along so well and had become so close again put a smile on her face. While at one time, there had been a mutual fondness between Vince and Stephanie's first husband, Paul, that relationship was damaged irreversibly when McMahon found out about Levesque's indiscretion with Michelle North. The relationship between Vince and Kurt seemed to be more of a father-son bond. The way Kurt had explained it to Stephanie was that Vince was the closest thing that he had to a father since his dad's death when Angle was just sixteen years old. There had been many coaches that mentored Kurt during his amateur wrestling days, but none of them, he explained, had ever took him in like a son like Vince did; and it warmed Steph's heart to know that.

Paul sat by himself at the Hilton hotel bar on Sansom Street in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. Like him, a large amount of fellow WWE superstars were staying at this hotel because it was only three miles away from the Wachovia Center where the Night of Champions PPV was going to take place tomorrow. He was drinking alone and had requested that the bar would be closed off to the public while he was there. Levesque was definitely not in the mood to sign autographs and pose for pictures. Hell, he didn't even want to invite his best friend, Shawn, to have a few drinks with him at the bar. Paul sat there with his glass scotch. His hazel eyes glazed over and appearing to be vacant. He felt lost.

"Excuse me, m'am, the bar is closed." One of the managers said quickly approaching the young woman who was trying to walk into the bar area of the hotel. Paul instinctively turned to see who it was the manager was talking to. It was then that he realized that it was Torrie Wilson.

"No, she's okay. She can come in." Levesque told the manager holding his right hand up before using it to motion Miss Wilson into the bar.

"Hi Paul, what are you doing in here all by yourself? Everyone's going out to grab some dinner, do you want to join us?" Torrie asked looking concerned as she slowly approached him. Paul shook his head slightly before taking a swig of his scotch.

"No thanks, I just want to be alone…"

Torrie's eyes scanned Levesque up and down. He really looked disheveled. Paul was wearing his usual dress pants and shirt but unlike normal, it looked like he had slept in them. His hair, which was usually well groomed, looked out of place. Torrie gave him a look of concern as she placed her hand on his broad shoulder.

"Paul, are you okay? Do you need someone to talk to? I'd be happy to hear about what's bothering you." She offered with a warm caring voice sitting down on the bar stool next to him.

"It would take me more than an hour to go through all the shit that's been bothering me. You don't want to know everything I've been had to deal with. I'd have Shawn here with me but he won't step foot in a bar now after becoming a born again Christian; as if he's been that much of a help to me as of late anyway." Paul muttered allowing his eyes to wander over to Torrie Wilson as he cracked a smile for her.

"Well I have over an hour that I would love to spend with you if you'd be willing to talk to me about it."

Levesque smile didn't fade as he shrugged his shoulders slightly. He then brought his glass to his mouth and quickly downed the rest of the scotch before setting it back down on the bar counter. He was somewhat surprised by Torrie's willingness to listen to him. Once again, she had been the only one, besides Shawn of course, that actually seemed to give a damn about the fact that he was depressed. He was a little apprehensive about airing out his dirty laundry to her. Paul wondered if letting Torrie know about the mistakes he made in his marriage to Stephanie would cause her to think less of him. But why did he care? She was the one asking to hear his sad story. She was the one offering to do the job that would usually have fallen upon the bartender. Why did he feel the urge to be accepted and liked by Torrie Wilson? Perhaps it was because at this point in his life, he thought no one cared.

"Another straight scotch and whatever this beautiful lady would like." Paul said with a smirk to the bartender as he pushed his empty glass forward.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Ten

Kurt stood by the large metal doors that were the main backstage entrance to the Wachovia Center. He took a deep breath before sighing and glancing at his Rolex. It was now half past two. Karen was more than two hours late from the specified time she was to arrive with their kids. With each opening of the doors, Angle's heart leaps thinking it could be his two children walking through them. It had been almost a year since the last time he had seen Kyra and Kody.

Stephanie approached her husband with Andrew in her arms and Aurora at her side. Just looking at him, she could see how crestfallen he was that Karen never showed up. He had been the one to question if his ex-wife would really travel across the state with their two kids to come and see him. That didn't change the fact that he had been hoping Karen would prove him wrong. Steph didn't know what to say. What words were going to make Angle forget the fact that he wasn't going to see his two children today and he had to redirect his focus to his match that evening?

"Are you going to be okay?" Steph asked in a loving whisper as she placed her hand on his clothed muscular arm to get his attention as she spoke to him. Baby Andy had taken a handful of his father's short sleeved shirt in his fist the moment his mommy leaned close enough.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm focused on the match. It will be fine." Angle said reassuring his wife about his ability to go on with his duties at the pay-per-view. He allowed a hint of a smile to find its way through his sadness while looking at his youngest child who was smiling back at him. It was if the baby was trying to tell his father that he still had him to spend time with and love.

Little Aurora spotted an empty catering table a few feet away from where she was standing with her mother. She quickly ventured over to it with her favorite pink bear grasped tightly in her arm. Once she was at the table, she stood on her tip toes and made the stuffed animal stand on the edge of the table. She began to make the toy move back and forth as if it was dancing. Her attention quickly shifted when she caught sight of her father walking up. Before Paul could even greet his little girl, she ran back to her mommy and hid behind her from shyness. Though Paul could see her little face poking around her mother's legs ever so slightly so she could see him.

"Hey Aurora, why don't you go with Daddy for a little while." Stephanie told her daughter, encouraging her to warm up to Paul and go with him for part of the evening. She was trying to have Aurora come out from behind her but the child ignored the suggestion.

Angle was glaring at Levesque with a look of disdain on his face. He placed both of his hands on Stephanie's arms and gently moved her to the other side of him and away from Paul. He then held his hand to his son's face, almost like he was shielding his child from Levesque before he spoke.

"I need to talk to you, in private." Kurt said aloud before motioning for Paul to follow him over to where the table was a few feet away from Stephanie and the children.

Levesque gave his ex-wife a look as if to silently ask her what this was about. Stephanie shrugged and watched the two guys walk away. It was only out of curiosity that Paul agreed to follow Kurt over to where they could speak in private. What would he possibly have to say to him that couldn't be said in the presence of Stephanie and the children?

"I've got a lot of shit going on today so I'm just going to come out and say what I need to say to you. If you ever put your hands on my son again, I guarantee that I will make you sorry." Angle said in a low voice that was very intense just like the many promos that he cut in the past for both TNA and WWE; this however was not a scripted interview for television, he was now being dead serious and speaking the truth.

Paul said nothing as he looked right back into Kurt's piercing eyes that looked to burn a hole right through him. It was obvious that Angle was speaking as a father who was certain another man harmed his child. Levesque looked away before Kurt continued talking, he wasn't going to come out and admit to any wrong doing. That was all he needed; for Stephanie to find out he pushed her youngest child.

"You know, I love your daughter, Aurora. I would never ever harm her in any way. I would like you to extend me the same courtesy with my son." Kurt continued speaking frankly as Paul rolled his eyes, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"If you're talking about courtesies, why don't you allow me to speak with my ex-wife without you constantly interfering all the time?" Paul asked allowing his frustrations to come right out as he turned the discussion right around on Angle.

"Why do you need to talk to Stephanie in private at all? What, do you think there is something you could do or say that would make Steph magically fall back in love with you?" Angle asked giving a chuckle to make Levesque feel like he was a complete joke for thinking that way. He let out a few more laughs looking down at the floor. When he did look back up at Paul, he became serious again.

"Don't waste your time. Steph is the happiest she's ever been. You're nothing but an unpleasant memory to her now." Kurt said in almost a whisper that had such force it caused him to shake. Paul felt his anger building as well; One of Angle's fingers were only inches away from his nose while he was pointing at him.

"That's bullshit, that's what you feel safe thinking." Paul replied matching Kurt's intensity as he swatted away his hand like he would a pesky fly before continuing.

"The truth is that when Steph lays in bed at night with you, she's thinking about me and what we had together." Levesque told him not holding a single thing back. His words caused Angle to look away and wet his lips. He glanced over at Stephanie who was silently mouthing the word 'what' because she was curious as to what they were discussing. Kurt used a hand to quickly rub his nose before making his reply.

"The only thing Stephy is thinking about in bed with me is how damn good it feels while I'm fucking her brains out. It certainly isn't your name that she moans and screams." Angle said throwing his words at Levesque like rocks aimed right at his face. He even smirked after his words only to get under Paul's skin even more.

Paul could feel his self control begin to slip away after Angle's crude comment. Kurt bringing up the fact that he was now the one being intimate with Stephanie was a low blow. It caused him to actually think about the woman he loved having sex with a man who he despised. It even made him think back to how he felt when he found out that Stephanie had slept with Angle when they were separated. He shook with anger as all the memories and terrible feelings came flooding back to him before Kurt turned his back to Levesque and began to walk away.

"Paul no! Kurt!" Stephanie hollered as soon as she saw her former husband lunge forward out of nowhere and swiftly attack her husband from behind. Her eyes were wide from shock and concern.

The unexpected blow to the back of the head caused Angle to trip forward before he instinctively whip around to face Levesque. It was when Paul went to swing again that Kurt ducked down and with his weight drove his shoulder into Paul's torso. Angle's defensive maneuver happened so quickly and with such force that before Levesque knew it, he was on his back looking up at the ceiling in shock that he just had his feet taken out from under him. Kurt was like a pit bull now. He laid on top of Paul with all his weight and contorted him into a legit submission hold that twisted Levesque's head, neck, and shoulder like he was a pretzel.

"Big mistake, Levesque! You don't want to go with me! There's no way your in my league!" Angle hollered tightening his hold causing Paul to wince in pain through his hair since it was all jumbled and over his face.

"Kurt, get off of him! You're scaring the kids!" Stephanie yelled as Andrew began to cry after taking the lead from his older sister who was afraid of the backstage violence that came out of nowhere. Aurora was hiding her eyes in her mother's dress shirt after she was scooped up by Steph in an attempt to comfort her and Andy.

"Whoa, whoa, Kurt, come on man, chill! Take it easy!" Shane McMahon yelled as he ran onto the scene with his father close behind. The scuffle could be heard down the hallway and they came as soon as they head the commotion. The two McMahons pulled Kurt off of their former in-law and tried their best to restrain him.

"Kurt, he's not worth your time. Calm down damn it, he's in the opening tag title match tonight and he can't be getting injured. Just think with your head, son. Tonight is about business, not personal squabbles." Vince told his son-in-law as he and Shane both held Angle back. Paul was still lying on the floor holding his neck and one shoulder blade with his hands.

"What brought all this on? You're going to need some ice for the back of your head." Steph told her husband as she looked at him with concern. She had her hand placed on the back of his head where she could feel a bruise already forming with the swelling. Angle was breathing heavy. He was still worked up from the altercation. Stephanie's words didn't phase him.

"Steph, come on, bring the kids. We need to have some space between these two." Vince told his daughter as he motioned for her to follow him, Shane, and Kurt.

Stephanie was still somewhat in shock by what had just transpired between Angle and Levesque. She was looking down at her ex-husband for a moment, silently assessing whether or not he was really hurt. After all, he was the father of her daughter and she was worried for his welfare as well as her husband's. She thought for a brief second about going over to check on him but decided to follow her family down the hall with the children in her arms.

"What the fuck are you all looking at? The show's over!" Paul barked out at the group of mid card wrestlers who were standing nearby in the hallway. They had all gathered there as spectators of the brief fight between Kurt and Paul. Levesque's words caused them to disperse while making comments about Angle getting the best of the fight. The altercation was over and there was nothing more for them to see.

"Are you all right? What possessed you to do this? What did this accomplish?" Shawn asked each question one after the other as he helped his friend to his feet. Paul was still favoring his right shoulder. He kept his left hand on it in an attempt to alleviate the pain.

"It was worth getting my hands on that little son of a bitch. You don't know how great it felt clocking him on the back of his bald head." Paul replied through grit teeth.

"Well I'm glad you got one good punch in. Is your shoulder going to be okay? You know our unified tag title match with Carlito and Primo is slated to open the pay-per-view. Do you want to have an EMT look at it?" Michaels asked.

"I'll be fine. It's going to be a forgettable match anyway. Vince just wants the new unified tag champions to get a credible win. At my expense of course. What else is new?"

"This conflict between you and Angle is only going to escalate. I'm going to go talk to Stephanie. Maybe I can help defuse the situation. This has all gone on long enough." Shawn said completely ignoring his DX buddy's comments about the details of their match for the pay-per-view.

"I have a feeling your match with Hardy tonight is going to steal the show." Shane told his brother-in-law as they sat on one of the leather couches in the locker room.

"Yeah, just like our King of the Ring match in 2001." Kurt replied with a smile. He had been holding a small pack of ice to the back of his head that his wife had gotten for him. He didn't need it anymore.

"We've got to do another match together." McMahon said causing Angle to let out a laugh.

"I'm serious. We had great in ring chemistry."

"Shane O, no offense man, but I saw your so called punches to Orton when you and Vince were feuding with him last year. And besides, you know I'm a stiff worker. Marissa would be pissed at me if I gave you one too many stiff shots."

"Yeah, you're right. I remember how upset she got when she saw how bloody I was after our street fight. Shit, I know Steph would get just as upset if we had another match like that. I know she worries about you."

"I know she does. I keep telling her my health is fine. I could go for any physical they require for MMA tomorrow and I would pass. I was cleared last year to fight but they didn't want to give me the money up front." Angle explain shifting the conversation to his MMA aspirations.

"Oh I know my sister. She'll freak out if go and take the physical to be cleared to fight. I wouldn't do it if I were you." Shane told Kurt speaking with complete honesty and sincerity.

"I know, I'm well aware of the fact that she's completely against the idea. I just can't help think about how I would do in the cage. I mean, I mastered the art of both amateur and professional wrestling. I know that if I committed to training for MMA, I could be a success. The time to do it would be now though. I'm not a young guy anymore." Angle admitted.

"Yeah, we sure can't beat the clock." Shane commented running his hand through his dark brown hair that now had a good amount of white growing in.

"Going grey there, huh Shane O?" Kurt asked with a smile as he playfully punched McMahon in the arm.

"At least I have a full head of hair." Shane quickly replied returning a swift jab to the arm causing Kurt to laugh out loud.

"Touché…" Angle muttered with a smile as he rubbed his shaved bald head with his right hand while Shane laughed.

Stephanie sat in a tan leather sofa in one of the many backstage rooms. In her hand she held a clipboard that had all of her notes had written in pen on a sheet of paper that had the current pay-per-view card printed out on it. She was going over everything again by herself since the production meeting had already taken place earlier in the day and there were a few tweaks made to some of the matches.

Aurora and Andrew were both asleep next to her on the sofa. They had both conked out fifteen minutes ago which allowed Stephanie to get a good amount of work done without having any interruptions.

"Hey Steph, can I talk to you for a sec?"

The voice entering the room caused Stephanie to immediately look up from her clipboard. She smiled when she saw that it was Shawn who was requesting to speak with her.

"Yeah sure, just be quiet. My little ones are asleep." Stephanie whispered pointing out her sleeping children to her long time friend.

"I'm worried about Paul. It's been a year since you guys parted ways but he's still not over you. It's really taking a toll on him. He's not behaving like himself and I think you need to sit him down and talk to him." Michaels explained in a hushed voice.

"Shawn, I appreciate the fact that you're Paul's friend and you're worried about him, but it's not my responsibility anymore to deal with him and all of his bullshit. That's the magic of divorce. With all the shit he put me through that last year of our marriage, it's no wonder he's feeling regretful. That's his problem and I'm not going to lose any sleep over it." Steph explained in a calm and quiet voice.

"I understand…" Michaels said quietly. He realized that Stephanie wasn't interested in knowing anything about Paul's current emotional state. There was no point in pressing the issue with her. Shawn wanted to keep things friendly between them.

"The only thing I can hope for from Paul is that he stops playing the victim and actually steps up and becomes a father to Aurora. Here she is asleep and where is he?" Steph asked raising an eyebrow.

Shawn wanted to reply in Paul's defense that he was in fact getting ready for their match that was going to take place in an hour. The events that had taken place earlier in the night didn't at all make Aurora available to Paul. The Heartbreak Kid wanted to make Stephanie aware of this but quickly dropped the issue when he saw Vince McMahon quickly enter the room.

"Dad, what are you doing? He's asleep. Where are you going with him?" Stephanie asked her father in a whisper as she saw him gently lifting his sleeping grandson from the sofa.

"Shh, I'm spending time with my grandson. I want him with me at the gorilla position for the start of the show." Vince told his daughter as he started carrying the baby off. Andrew awoke and gave a few whiny cries.

"That's too close to the stage, it's going to terrify him when the pyrotechnics go off. He's tired just put him back down with his sister."

"He'll be fine. He's with his gramps. He says 'see you later, mommy. I want to get close to the action.'." Vince said aloud speaking in his baby talk voice. He was swaying as he walked with Andrew, keeping him from beginning to cry.

"Why don't you take Aurora with you instead? Dad, you're going to throw off his sleep pattern. You're not the one that will have to be up with him all night." Steph called after her father. She was wasting her breath for Vince had already left the room with her son.

"I'll see you later, Stephanie." Shawn finally said after Stephanie had returned her attention to her paper work.

"Bye Shawn…" She replied without even looking up at him.

Kurt's eyes remained fixed on the hallway wall in front of him as he quickly did a few stretches to further warm himself up for his match that was up next. Stephanie was standing right there next to him looking worried as she watched every move he was making during his stretch routine. Shane was nice enough to watch the kids so that Steph could focus completely on her husband's match.

"Kurt…" She said aloud waiting for him to break his concentration and look at her.

He was wearing a brand new singlet with matching knee pads that he had custom made just for the pay-per-view like he had done many times before in the past. The straps were down and he had his signature black hoodie jacket that he had become partial to while working for TNA.

"Yeah." He finally replied after a few seconds. Angle stopped what he was doing and looked right into his wife's eyes.

"Please be careful…" She told him as she lovingly pulled the black hood of his warm up jacket over his head for his entrance to the ring.

"Steph, I'll be fine. Don't worry, sweetheart. I'll make you proud, I promise." Kurt whispered with a smile before he leaned in and gave her a tender kiss to her already parted lips.

All the boys in the back were all gathered around the backstage television monitor for the Kurt Angle vs. Jeff Hardy match. This was a normal ritual backstage for the matches at the top of the card. Even though the match wasn't the main event, all the guys still took notice because it was Angle and Hardy who were out there performing.

Stephanie was right in the front row of the group. She stood there with her hands clasped together and under her chin while she watched the match get underway. She felt the presence of a knot in her stomach which would tighten with every bump Kurt took.

Paul was standing up against the wall with Shawn. He was watching Stephanie instead of the match. He rolled his eyes each time she winced and made a face because the bump Angle took looked painful. Kurt being in the upper card in a non title match at the pay-per-view made no sense. The point of the show was to have all the WWE championships defended in one night. How did a number one contenders match fit in there? This match should have taken place on RAW.

"Kurt…Be careful…" Stephanie whispered aloud as the pace of the match began to pick up. With Hardy's high flying agility came a number of risky spots that pained her to watch. Hardy taking a flying leap out of the ring onto Angle caused him to hit the ground hard. He laid there for a moment with the look of pain on his face. Steph couldn't be sure if the pain was real or if he was selling the move. Maybe it was both.

Jeff did his famous team xtreme pose before going under the ring for a ladder. Steph's eyes widened, she was worried about how the ladder was going to come into play in the match after it had been changed to no disqualifications earlier today, much to her disapproval. Hardy taking his time removing the ladder from under the ring gave Angle the opportunity to get to his feet and gain the upper hand with a few hard German uppercuts. Angle then through Jeff into the ring before pushing the ladder in as well.

Kurt leaned the ladder up in one of the corners of the ring before he went over to Hardy who was already starting to get up off the canvas. He grabbed hold of him by his long multicolored hair and then once he was to his feet, he used his arm to make it look like was going to Irish whip Hardy into the ladder but Jeff quickly countered with an Irish whip of his own and set Angle flying into the ladder. Kurt's head along with the rest of the front of his body slammed into the ladder causing him to double over in pain. The crowd cheered as Hardy began to jump around on the opposite side of the ring, being a showman to the cheering crowd while gaining momentum for the next spot.

Stephanie found herself looking away from the monitor. She knew another ladder spot was coming up. Hardy charged toward Kurt who was there to meet him with a belly to belly over head suplex which threw Jeff up and over Angle and right into the ladder. The fans stood up and cheered. Steph could hear the huge pop from where she was in the back.

"This match is unbelievable. Angle's definitely still got it." Adam "Edge" Copeland told Stephanie while the match continued to drag on. The battle had moved to the stage which was considerably high off the ground. They exchanged rights back and forth, both wobbling on the edge of the front of the stage. They were obviously both getting tired after going back and forth for a good twenty minutes. The crowd was completely into the match and the story it was telling.

"Nice table spot." Jason "Christian" Reso commented as Jeff took the bump off the stage and into a table which broke clean in two.

"Oh my God, Kurt. What are you doing?" Steph said as she watched her husband back up far away from the edge of the stage while waiting for Hardy to get to his feet. He was planning to do a spot.

Angle ran and quickly took a Swanton dive off the stage and right into Hardy who was going to try and do his best to catch him and cushion the fall. The force that Angle hit into Jeff was too much. Angle's boots hit into him causing Hardy to fall backwards which allowed Kurt to come down on the concrete right on his back, shoulder blades, and worst of all, neck.

"Kurt…" Steph said muffled through her hand that was placed over her mouth. She was in shock by the botched spot and was hoping and praying that Kurt would signal to the referee that he was okay to get up and finish the match. The audience in the Wachovia Center was going nuts. They were on their feet chanting the famous "Holy Shit!" chant that had a few "Angle is God" chants mixed in.

It was the sight of her husband's face showing his agonizing pain that made Stephanie begin to lose her composure. The referee was afraid that Angle had broke his neck yet again and he wanted to have the EMTs step in but Kurt refused. He kept muttering that he was okay.

"I think he's okay, Steph." Irvine told Stephanie trying to reassure her as she watched the monitor with her eyes filled with tears.

"He's hurt! Look at him holding his head and neck! Why didn't Dad call to put a stop to the match! He could be paralyzed!" Stephanie sobbed frantically as much of the backstage attention began to shift to her because of her emotional state.

She continued to cry and watch helplessly as the ending spot of the match finally came when Hardy did a Swanton Bomb onto Angle who was lying on top of a ladder in the center of the ring. After Jeff got the three count and his music began to play, both he and Angle were just lying there; both exhausted and in pain. The whole arena was on their feet applauding the two performers.

"Don't tell me she's actually going out there." Paul muttered to Michaels as he watched Stephanie quickly push her way through the crowd of wrestlers backstage and run toward the stage access.

"Yeah, it looks like it. She did the same for you when you were injured. I hope Kurt's okay. That was a hell of a botch." Shawn pointed out watching the monitor from afar. He could see Stephanie running down the ramp toward the ring.

"Fuck him, he deserved what he got. I hope the asshole becomes a quadriplegic. Look at Steph making a fool of herself on live television sobbing." Paul muttered with a scowl on his face as he watched his former wife run into the ring where the EMTs were helping Kurt to his feet. Shawn looked on at his friend with disappointment.

Levesque felt a wave of unbridled jealousy overcoming him as he watched Stephanie tending to Angle who was unsteady on his feet. Both her hands were on his face, she was looking into his eyes and speaking to him through her tears. By the look on Angle's face, Paul could tell that the lights were on but no one was home. He was a damn fool for continuing the match. Paul was sure he would get commended for it, the fucking suck up. Levesque thought about when he was injured earlier that night and how Stephanie didn't lift a finger to help him or see if he was okay yet she had all the love and compassion in the world for Kurt when he got injured. It was like she was trying to make him jealous; trying to make him furious.

"Poor Kurt, do you think he's going to be okay?" Torrie asked Paul walking over to him. She too had been watching the match on a monitor backstage but had only come out to the large grouping of wrestlers after the botch in the match.

Paul looked at Torrie who was awaiting his response. His eyes scanned his body up and down quickly before he cracked a smile and looked back at the monitor screen where Stephanie was still fawning all over her injured husband.

"Oh yeah, everything's going to be just fine…" Paul muttered as he flashed a smirk at Torrie which caused her to look puzzled. Perhaps it was time he started to play the game that Steph had up until now had been controlling.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Eleven

Stephanie stood by and watched a trainer give Kurt a large ice pack to put on the back of his head and neck. There was a large deep purple and green bruise on the back of his head from where he whacked it into the concrete from that botched flip off the stage. Steph's hands were placed on her hips while she glared at her husband. An EMT informed him that he had a concussion and he was lucky that his neck was okay.

Steph went from being scared and crying to being pissed off the moment she heard that Kurt was going to be alright. There had been so many thoughts running through her head when she thought about the possibility that he was seriously hurt, but now that she knew that he just had a bad concussion, her thoughts drifted to his insistence that he would be fine during the match. He had lied to her.

"You promised me that you would be okay in your match with Jeff!" She hollered at Angle the moment the EMT and trainer stepped away from him.

"Steph, I'm fine. Please don't make a big deal out of this. It's not a big deal." Kurt replied while he sat on the examining table in the trainer's room. He was sitting there holding the ice pack to the back of his head. It hurt and the last thing he wanted to hear from his wife was about the botch.

"No Kurt, it is a big deal! Just because you get it in your head to do a stupid flip off the stage, you could have broke your neck for the sixth time! And where would that leave me and our son? Do you think I want to bury my husband, be a widow?" She yelled in a nagging voice that caused him to close his eyes and exhale.

Paul was standing by outside in the hallway. He could hear his ex-wife scolding Angle and it was like music to his ears. It was about time she got upset with him. That crying jag she had over him earlier was ridiculous. Maybe she was finally realizing that her new "perfect husband" wasn't so perfect. As Levesque stood there with a huge smile on his face, he kept glancing in each direction in the hallway just in case Vince or Shane showed up. He didn't want anyone to know that he was eavesdropping on the conversation between the Angles.

"What if you were paralyzed? I would have to be the one taking care of you! You would never get to pick up Andrew again or play with him! Did you ever stop to think about our family?"

"I knew I wasn't hurt that bad. Do you think I would have said to continue the match if I was seriously hurt?" Angle finally answered back in a mutter. He only glanced at Steph for a moment before looking straight ahead again. He was still feeling woozy from the concussion.

"You're forty years old! You don't need to be doing those kind of dangerous spots, especially with your injury history! I don't understand why you can't work safer by working lighter!"

"I don't work light in my matches! I only go at full pace! People come to our shows to see five star matches so that's what I give them and that's why I am respected as a wrestler by all of the fans and the boys in the back! This is who I am, Stephanie! You've known me since I signed my first contract with WWE so this all shouldn't be a surprise to you!" Kurt hollered back finally showing his frustration with his wife's nagging. It was bad enough that he was in pain, but getting his balls broken on top of that was just adding to the unpleasantness of the situation.

Stephanie eyes widened. She was someone taken off guard by her husband's outburst of anger toward her comments about her concern for him. Kurt was usually a very easy going guy. This was one the first time in a long time he had raised his voice at her. She couldn't believe that he would feel the need to yell at her when all she was doing was worrying about his safety. Tears began to well up on Steph's eyes causing their beautiful blue color to sparkle.

Paul was reveling in the fact that Kurt and Stephanie were arguing. The fact that they were having a disagreement only proved that the two of them were not the happy couple that Stephanie wanted him to think they were. This only proved that Steph belonged with him and not Angle. Perhaps him raising his voice to her will help her see that and she'll finally leave. Paul's delight in the situation was cut short when he saw Shane walk around the corner toward the training room. Levesque quickly walked on down the opposite site of the hall and around the corner out of sight from Stephanie's brother.

"I saw the match on the monitor! That match was awesome! Dad couldn't believe it! He would have come in here to say so himself but he's still in the gorilla position for the two main event matches. Kurt, you are so lucky that you're okay. Isn't he, Steph?" Shane said showing his enthusiasm for the performance Angle and Hardy put on. He was looking back and forth between his sister and brother-in-law.

"Where are my kids, Shane?" Steph asked wiping away a few escaping tears from under her eyes.

"I tucked them in on the bus when they fell asleep. I just came back here to congratulate Kurt." Shane replied as he watched his sister immediately start walking out of the room now that she knew where her two children were.

"Shit…" Kurt muttered before exhaling sharply and rubbing his eyes with his free hand. He knew that he had hurt his wife's feelings and that she was crying because of him.

"Is she okay?" Shane asked taking notice of his sister's behavior. He figured it was because she had been so worried about Kurt's injuries. He had seen her run out to the ring to check on him.

"She's upset with me right now." Kurt replied in a mutter through his hand that was still over his face.

"What is she on the rag?" Shane asked giving his brother-in-law a playful hit on the shoulder with his hand. He thought he would cheer Angle up by asking if it was that time of the month for his sister. Judging by the way Kurt was acting, he needed to lighten up and laugh.

"No, I don't think so." Kurt said not giving even a slight chuckle. He removed the hand from his face before he spoke again.

"I need to go talk with her."

Kurt went to hop off the edge of the examining table. The moment he tried to stand, he felt the room begin to spin. Being unsteady on his feet, he immediately sat back up on the trainer's table with the help of Shane who saw how off balance he was.

"It's the concussion. Just sit here for a while until you get your legs back under you." Shane told his brother-in-law. He was able to give him instruction on the matter because he himself had suffered a number of concussions over the years.

"Steph, are you okay?"

Stephanie heard the voice of her ex-husband as she was just about to walk out of the doors that led to the arena parking lot where her luxury bus was parked. She stopped and turned to face him. He was looking directly into her eyes while slowly walking up to her. Paul was waiting for her to reply.

"I'm fine." Steph finally said running her hands through her brown locks of hair. She looked away from his gaze, feeling a bit uncomfortable because she really didn't feel fine like she was telling him. Did he know that?

"Do you want to talk to me about it?" Levesque offered letting her know that he didn't believe her words. After all she had been his wife so he knew when something was troubling her. Perhaps this was the perfect opportunity for her to finally open up to him again.

"No, thank you. There really is nothing about my personal life that I need to discuss with you." Stephanie answered back quickly. She wasn't about to tell her ex-husband the details about her marriage.

"Why don't we talk about how Angle treats you? He puts his wrestling career before you and when you voice your concern about him he screams at you. Is that what you really want out of a husband, Steph?" Paul asked making his voice sound full of concern when really he was trying to make a point.

"Were you listening in when I was in the training room talking with my husband?" Steph asked looking suspiciously at Paul. He was obviously citing the conversation that just took place between her and Kurt. How else did he know about it if he wasn't listening in on them?

"I was walking by and heard him screaming at you. You don't deserve to be treated like that, Steph. Just say the word, I'll take you and Aurora home with me." Levesque told her allowing himself to suggest what he wanted most.

His proposal caused Stephanie to focus her eyes back on him. She looked very surprised by what he was asking her to do. She was also surprised by the fact that Paul would condemn Kurt so quickly for hollering at her when during their marriage he did his fair share of screaming. Steph couldn't help think back to the time in their marriage when Paul was having an affair and would be so hateful to her because he knew he was doing wrong. As a matter of fact, it wasn't until he lost it all that he was truly remorseful for his actions.

"Kurt and I had a disagreement. That happens in all marriages, including ours when we were married. I don't want to talk to you about my marriage. Aurora is the only thing in my life that you can be concerned about." Steph replied speaking clearly and wide eyed so that her ex new she was being completely serious and firm in her statements.

Well when can I see my daughter this week?" Paul asked quickly switching topics to the only one that Steph was obviously willing to speak about, their daughter.

"My wedding anniversary is on Wednesday. My parents will have Aurora along with my son for the day. You can work a time to come and visit with Aurora. Just call my mom. You know you won't have any trouble dealing with her." She instructed before she turned her back on him and began to walk toward the doors to the parking lot.

"Yeah well I'll see how my schedule shapes up first. I plan on asking Torrie Wilson out to dinner some time this week." Paul replied back in a loud voice so that he was sure Stephanie heard him. He kept his eyes on her and waited to see her reaction to the news.

It wasn't until Steph had walked through the doors and out into the parking lot that Paul's words finally sank in. She stopped for a brief moment and replayed the words in her mind. Did she hear him right? He was going to ask Torrie Wilson out to dinner? What brought that on? Wait, why did she care? Paul was a single man now and was free to play the field even if he was going to date a diva who was once a very close friend.

Angle finally felt well enough to leave the trainer's room. The main event had finished and Vince had immediately went up to him and hugged him for his job well done. Kurt let Vince's praises roll right off of him. His mind was more focused on going to his wife as he slowly walked out into the parking lot and into his luxury bus.

The bus was quiet, all the lights turned off except for Aurora's nightlight. It illuminated her small room just enough for Kurt to see her laying in bed asleep as he walked by. His and Stephanie's room was dark. He quickly entered it and flicked on his bedside lamp so that he had some light to get undressed by. Once the light was on, he looked over at Stephanie who was laying on her side turned away from him. He couldn't tell if she was awake or asleep.

Grabbing his t-shirt with both hands, he pulled it over his head and threw it in the small hamper near the crib. The sound of his son cooing softly made Angle approach the crib. There was his youngest child lying on his back and looking up at him. Steph had left him in only a diaper since it was mid summer. Kurt reached down into the crib and lovingly rubbed the baby's tummy causing Andy to smile and kick out with a playful squeal.

"Is the show over?" Steph asked aloud before she let out a few sniffles showing her congestion because she had been crying.

"Yeah it is." Kurt replied quickly pulling off his shorts before he gently got into bed. He waited until he turned out the bedside light before he continued.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you. My head was killing me and I took it out on you. I shouldn't have done that." Kurt said through the darkness as he scooted over to her side of the bed and lovingly caressed her arm with his hand.

There was a moment before Steph said anything. She let out a few more sniffles and shifted to her other side so that she was now facing her husband. She took his hand in hers before she spoke.

"I know you were upset. I was too. I just worry about you so much, Kurt. I don't know what I would do if something happened to you and when you put yourself in harms way like that, it forces me to think about all that can go wrong." Steph muttered as the tears began to flow again.

"I know, sweetheart. And sometimes I get caught up in the moment and I don't think about how what I do effects you. I'm selfish for that. You and my children are the most important things in my life." Kurt replied before he brought Steph's hand up to his lips and kissed it.

"And little Aurora, she's a part of you so I can't help but love her. I know Paul would never give up his parental rights but I would adopt her in a second. She deserves to have a loving father." Kurt confessed in a whisper as he felt Steph bring her hands up to his face.

"That's so sweet but you're right, Paul wouldn't want that. And I really want him and Aurora to have a father-daughter relationship. I told him that he could talk to mom about coming over to her and dad's during our anniversary. I know dad will be busy with work in his office. Mom still gets along great with Paul so there shouldn't be any problems."

"That sounds okay. Ah, shit." Kurt said in a wince causing Steph to sit up in bed and flick on the bedside lamp. Angle had sat up in bed and was holding the back of his head.

"Not only is my head killing me but my whole body aches. I think the adrenaline is finally wearing off." Kurt said through grit teeth. He swung his legs over to the side of the bed and sat there on the edge.

"Is there anything I can do?" Stephanie asked. Her voice was full of concern as she got behind her husband and began to massage his bare shoulders with her hands.

Kurt let out a soft moan and closed his eyes. He was trying to take his mind off the pain his body was in and put it on the soft kisses his wife was giving the side of his neck while she rubbed his shoulders. Angle loved when Stephanie tended to him. She was so much more caring than Karen had been.

"That feels great, baby…God I wish I could take something for the pain…" Kurt whispered sharing with his wife his thoughts. Because of his kicked pain killer addiction, Angle was no longer allowed to have any kind of prescription drugs to help block the pain. He had to work through it himself which wasn't always easy.

Stephanie allowed her hands to travel around to the front of her husband's chest so that she had her arms around his body. Using her finger tips, she traced the outline of his abs which were still extremely warm from his ring work earlier.

"Maybe I can give you something that will help make you feel better." Steph whispered seductively into his right ear. Her has slowly traveled down his hard flat stomach and grabbed hold of the bulge in his briefs.

"That sounds great, babe, but my whole body is killing me. I think I just want to take a hot shower and try and get some sleep." Kurt replied before he turned his head and caught Stephanie's lips with his. He gave her a quick kiss before removing her hands from his crotch so that he could get up.

"All right, whatever you think will help." Steph whispered, her voice showing some signs of disappointment.

She had already gotten herself turned on by exploring her lean and muscular husband with her hands. She was somewhat surprised that he was rejecting her proposal to make love. Usually Stephanie would only have to drop a small hint when she was in the mood and Kurt would be more than happy to satisfy her. Not to mention he had a decent sex drive himself. Kurt must have been in a lot of discomfort for him to opt to take a hot shower over making love to his wife.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twelve

Kurt slowly walked down the backstage corridor. He was carrying not only his own blue wrestling duffle bag but his wife's work satchel and diaper bag. He and Stephanie had arrived with the kids at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. for Monday Night RAW. Steph was speaking with a few members of her writing team before the production meeting and Angle was on his way to meet her. Just before he reached his wife who was at the other end of the hallway, he was stopped by WWE diva, Candice Michelle.

"Hey Kurt." Candice said in a sweet voice stepping right in front of Angle so that he had to stop and speak with her.

"Hi Candice, how are you?" Kurt replied with a quick smile as he tried to walk around her and continue toward his wife.

"I'm good. Hey, I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed watching your match with Jeff last night. You were amazing!" She exclaimed again moving to cut off his stride.

"Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed the match, but I-"

"I mean, I really don't understand why Stephanie was so upset with you. I know I was proud of you." Candice said cocking her head to the side while smiling.

Angle let out a chuckle while looking at the attractive diva standing before him. It was obvious she was laying the flirtation on pretty thick, out of nowhere too. His eyes then shot down to his arm when he felt her place her soft hand to it.

"My wife, Stephanie, is proud of me too. I actually have to go see her now." Kurt replied quickly pulling away from her touch.

"Wait, Kurt, I also wanted to offer you my services. Um, I mean babysitting services. I know Stephanie usually has her hands full before RAW every week, I would love to watch your gorgeous baby boy. He's so cute." She replied still smiling.

"Yeah well I'll run that by, Steph. Thanks, okay, bye." Angle told her before pushing past her to finally get down the hallway to his wife.

By the time Kurt reached Stephanie, she was giving him a confused look. She had obviously seen what had transpired between him and Candice Michelle and was awaiting an explanation from her husband.

"What was that about?" She asked raising an eyebrow before she shifted her son to her other hip so that she could take her work satchel from Kurt with her right hand. She knew that she didn't have to elaborate on what she was asking about.

"Beats the hell out of me. She's acting like a dog in heat. Here, do you want me to take him?" Angle offered holding his hands out for his son after dismissing the diva's actions like it was a joke.

"What a little two faced bitch. Do you know how much support I gave her since she's been with us?" Steph replied staying on the topic on Candice while completely ignoring Kurt's question about the baby.

"It's no big deal, honey. Maybe that's her idea of being friendly. She offered to babysit Andrew for us. Oddly she didn't mention Aurora, I guess she meant her too."

"She's not watching either one of my children. She's stupid for thinking that I would let them or you near her if she's going to behave like that. As if I didn't see what happened to Sara and Mark after McCool had her hands in things." Steph muttered.

Her eyes were focused on Candice as she sneered from afar. She didn't know what had made her decided to flirt with her husband. Her and the young diva had a history of being on good terms. Steph, after all, worked with the divas a lot. Many of them were very grateful to have her guidance.

"You know, you really are sexy when you're jealous. Maybe tonight I can give you what you wanted and never got last night. My head is feeling a lot better." Kurt said in a whisper to his wife after taking her into his arms. This caused Steph to let out a playful laugh before giving him a peck on the lips. His advances defused the situation causing his wife's jealous anger to dissipate.

"Mommy, I want you!" Aurora whined. She was getting her mother's attention by pulling on her dress pants while rubbing her eyes with her free hand. It was getting close to her nap time. Angle quickly took his son from his wife's arms so that Aurora could be picked up by her mom.

"You know, we may need to think about getting a nanny for the kids. Just for during the show. We can't keep taking them into the production meetings with us the times I want to sit in." Kurt pointed out while he and his wife walked toward the conference room where the meeting was taking place.

"It's not a problem bringing them. I think Dad likes having them with us."

Stephanie set Aurora up with a little play area on the floor to keep her entertained during the meeting with Vince and the rest of the production team. Like usual, her daughter was content with the number of stuffed animals and coloring books she had in front of her. The baby, Stephanie sat right on her lap. Popping a pacifier in his mouth was all he required to be a happy quiet baby in his mother's arms.

"Before we begin the meeting, I just want to make sure you have all met my grandson, Andrew Vincent Angle. He's named after me, and he's going to be a future WWE champion." Vince announced in his loud booming voice that showed just how proud he was of his eleven month old grandchild to the large number of employees that sat before him.

"Dad, they know I had Andrew. He's eleven months old. Can we please get down to business?" Steph interjected after rolling her eyes at her father. Baby Andy had been born almost a year ago but yet Vince still insisted on showing him off as if everyone didn't know about his birth. All the employees would just smile and make a comments about their agreement with Vince, that his grandson would be a terrific in ring performer when he was grown.

"I was thinking that I could have a couple of months of TV program with Jack Swagger. I promised the kid that I would work with him." Kurt told his father-in-law as a way to do what his wife suggested, getting down to business.

"If you think you see real potential in him, go for it. He can be your pet project. Do you have your eye on anyone else as far as guys you would want to work with?" Vince asked Kurt while he put his reading glasses on.

"That Evan Bourne has peaked my interest. He reminds me of AJ Styles in TNA. I'd like to bring him over from SmackDown soon if that'd be okay with you, Dad." Angle replied putting his arm around Steph who was sitting right next to him.

"Speaking of SmackDown, we still need to figure out who is going to be Edge's next challenger for the World Heavyweight championship. I know at our last meeting a number of writers suggested we push Rey Mysterio as a number one contender because of SmackDown's high level of viewership from the Hispanic population but frankly that's been done many times in the past and we need a fresh feud." Vince explained.

"What about bringing Jay Reso over to SmackDown? Edge and Christian feuding over the world championship would be a huge draw since they were one of the best tag teams in the late nineties, early 2000s. Jay's work as Christian Cage in TNA was pure gold, the guy deserves a push." Kurt said pitching the idea to move Christian from ECW and have him feud with his long time friend Adam Copeland.

"I've seen his work before. I'm not impressed by him. I rehired him because I saw an opportunity to take one of TNA's main eventers. I could careless about his work in TNA." Vince replied immediately shooting down his son-in-law's idea.

"I'm telling you, they guy has the charisma and the in-ring ability to be a key player on SmackDown. He's over with the smart marks, which is no easy feat." Angle said, again trying to convince Vince that Christian was so much more than a marginally average wrestler that McMahon made him out to be.

"What about Triple H being the challenger?" Stephanie asked cutting into her husband and father's discussion with her own suggestion.

Angle and McMahon fell silent as a look of surprise appeared on both of their faces. Whispers could be heard amongst the creative team as well as the rest of the production team. They were all shocked by Steph's proposal to push her ex-husband. Had hell frozen over?

"I think it's about time we let bygones be bygones. Triple H is still a big draw and Paul could make Adam look very good." Stephanie finally said aloud to follow up her suggestion to give reason for it.

"Levesque going out of his way to make another wrestler look good?" Angle chuckled showing his amusement with his wife's testimony while also ignoring her wanting to bury the hatchet with her ex. Vince started laughing as well causing his daughter to cock her head to the side and smile at the both of them before nudging her head in his daughter's direction. While she saw the humor in her husband's point, she didn't want her ex-husband bashed in front of their daughter.

"But in all seriousness, I'd be willing to put Hunter in the main event but only to make Edge look good while retaining the belt. I don't want the belt on Triple H." Vince explained going back to being professional.

"What about Mark? Isn't The Undertaker set to return his month? Why not have him and Edge put on a match for the title at SummerSlam?" Angle asked a moment after Vince spoke.

"That's a good idea, Kurt. The Phenom going up against the Rated R Superstar for the World Heavyweight championship." McMahon said with a smile before giving his son-in-law a pat on the back for suggesting the idea.

"Oh yeah, that's a great idea." A number of employees said aloud. They were trying to score points with the boss and his son-in-law by making the idea seem like it was ingenious. As if their ass kissing wasn't obvious.

"Like that hasn't been done before…" Steph muttered under her breath, moving her paperwork away from the edge of the table when her son tried to grab hold of it. Taker and Edge had numerous pay-per-view matches in the past. It wasn't the "fresh feud" her father had stated that he wanted. Yet, Vince was happy to have an alternative to giving Paul a push.

Kurt narrowed his eyes and looked over at Stephanie. He didn't know what to make of her new found support for the pushing of her ex-husband that seem to come out of nowhere. Since when was she all for letting bygones be bygones? He wanted to question her right then and there but he didn't. It was a topic that could wait until later when they were by themselves and not in front of the production team.

"Mr. Angle, I can't thank you enough for asking Mr. McMahon for a feud with me. It's going to be an honor, sir. You've seen what I can do in the ring, do you have any preliminary advice you can give me?" Swagger asked Kurt as he stood by watching Angle change a diaper. Vince had given Kurt the night off because the match with Jeff Hardy was so brutal and he wanted to sell Angle's injury. Plus, he thought his son-in-law had earned a night off.

"Call me Kurt, okay? As far as giving you advice, I noticed you tend to slow down your pace when you're pulling off some of your suplexes or transitioning. When you slow down, it looks awkward. Also, you need to work on selling your opponents' moves better. Especially when they are working on a body part, a leg for instance, you need to be limping and favoring it after." Angle told him, listing off the things that stood out to him while he scouted the young talent.

"Wrestling matches are more than getting into the ring and pulling off wrestling moves and taunting the crowd. It's about telling a story. Every match tells a story." Kurt continued as Swagger listened intently.

"What story? Daddy, what story is it?" Aurora asked pulling on Kurt's shirt, her voice filled with curiosity while she sat next to her brother as he was getting changed. Angle let out a chuckle before giving his stepdaughter a kiss on top of her head.

"I don't get how every match can be a story if there is absolutely no build up before hand. Like tonight, I'm scheduled to have a match with MVP where I go over clean. There's nothing to work off of, it's a random match." Jack explained looking confused about his task for the night.

"There is a story. You are just coming off of a lose to Kofi Kingston in the United States championship match from last night's pay-per-view. You're angry, you believe you should be United States champion. You decide you're going to take out all your aggression out on MVP. You need to get used to being intense with your ring work. I'm not going to lie. I'm a stiff worker, and if you don't bring it, I'll eat you alive in that ring." Kurt told Swagger. He was looking the kid in the eyes with a serious look on his face.

"I understand…" Jack replied after taking a moment to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat because of his intimidation of the Olympic Gold medalist.

"Good, do me a favor and go throw this away."

Angle said quickly as he threw the wrapped up soiled diaper into Swagger's hand like it was a ball for him to catch. Jack looked a bit disgusted by the fact that he was now holding a dirty diaper. Still, he said nothing to Kurt about it. Angle was after all helping him improve as a wrestler. He waited a moment, watching Kurt put a fresh diaper on his baby. He thought that maybe the Olympic champion would laugh and tell him that he was only joking about making him throw it away. He never did, so Swagger reluctantly walked away to dispose of it in the nearest trash can backstage.

"You're joking, right? You didn't seriously flirt with Stephanie's husband. Did you? You're married!" Maria Kanellis exclaimed in shock at what was going around backstage from a few of the divas. Her and Candice Michelle stood in the divas' locker room. They were the only two left in there so Maria spoke freely.

"Please, it was harmless flirting. Paul Levesque let it slip after the pay-per-view last night that Kurt has a crush on me but is just too much of a gentleman to make a pass." Candice said defending her actions.

"Well Melina saw you talking to him from afar and she said that he didn't seem the least bit interested in you. In fact, she said he couldn't get away from you fast enough." Maria replied letting out a few chuckles causing Candice to frown.

"Ugh I hate that bitch. It so obvious she's just jealous of me." Candice scoffed while running her hand through her hair.

"Well whatever is going on. You'd be smart to just leave Kurt Angle alone. I mean, he's not just spoken for, he's spoken for by Stephanie McMahon. You do not want to cross her. I don't think she would take too kindly to you engaging in "harmless flirting" with her husband." Maria said warning her fellow WWE diva.

"Don't be so dramatic. It's not that big of a deal. Stephanie and I are on good terms. I'm sure she knows that I'm not dumb enough to sleep with her husband. She knows me better than that." Candice Michelle explained before fixing the skimpy top to her outfit. Maria didn't look convinced by her words.

Angle spent the rest of the evening watching the kids while Steph did her job backstage with the creative and production team. The only task Kurt had given himself for the night was to watch Swagger's match against MVP. He sat backstage with his son asleep in his arms and Aurora conked out next to him on the sofa. Angle was pretty impressed with the moves Jack Swagger did pull off but it became someone repetitive when he did them more than once in two different spots. Kurt knew that being given the opportunity to work with the kid, he could very well be making a future main eventer.

"So what was with you bringing up the idea to push Paul on SmackDown?" Angle asked his wife as they both were undressing in their small bedroom on their luxury bus.

This had been in the back of Kurt's mind ever since the production meeting earlier in the day. Now he was finally bringing it up to his wife after RAW was over and it was time for bed.

Stephanie looked over at her husband. She looked a little bit surprised that he was asking her about this from out of nowhere. She watched him toss his shirt and pants aside and into the nearby hamper before cracking a smile.

"You know, you too are really sexy when you're jealous." Steph said throwing her husband's past words back at him before letting out an unbridled laugh. This prompted Kurt, who was now in only in his briefs, to jump onto the bed, making a swift maneuver across it in order to get to his wife.

"Tell me what that's about or I'll tickle it out of you." Kurt threatened in a sexy whisper before he pulled his wife onto the bed with him in order to pin her underneath him. This caused Stephanie to laugh again as she wiggled underneath her husband's muscular frame in a half hearted attempt to get free. This caused Angle to let out a small moan, catching his bottom lip with his front teeth as he looked down with a playful smirk at his beautiful wife.

"I just think that putting him in the main event for SummerSlam will help put all the resentment to rest. It has been a year. Paul is still Aurora's father, and I just think that he should have the opportunity to earn and support his daughter. Besides, it's a winning situation for us too. Triple H in the main event again can boost pay-per-view buy rates." Stephanie explained, her hands beginning to caress the curvature of Angle's abs after he started grinding his lower half into hers.

"Mm, if you say so, baby. I still say you're too nice to that asshole. He doesn't deserve it." Kurt muttered, bringing his forehead to hers which allowed her to catch his lips with hers.

Angle began showering her with kisses which she gladly accepted, savoring his taste. Steph closed her eyes feeling his lips move from her mouth, to her neck, then her chest. She let out a few giggles feeling him kiss around her belly button before moving down further.

"Kurt…Don't stop…" She muttered in somewhat of an almost silent gasp while massaging her husband's sore shoulders with her hands.

Steph knew full well that their baby was asleep in the nearby crib. Her eyes were closed, her mouth open, letting every moan escape freely while she raised her body up off the bed and toward her husband. He was definitely making up for last night and then some.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirteen

"Hey Levesque, will you job to me next? Do you think Angle and McMahon can make it happen for me?" T.J. Wilson called out across the backstage hallway when he saw Paul by himself with his cell phone in hand.

Paul looked up and saw that the young wrestler, Tyson Kidd was standing there smiling after he insulted him. Levesque said nothing as he brought his right hand up and gave the young talent the one figure salute.

"Don't be a jerk. Come on, you have to get your ring gear on." Nattie Neidhart scolded her boyfriend giving him a playful slap to his chest. The young star agreed and followed his long time girlfriend down the hallway.

"Little douche bag…" Paul muttered to himself before he turned his attention back to his phone. He quickly found Vince and Linda McMahon's home phone number in his contact list and pressed his green send button to call it. He needed to call Linda.

"Hey Linda, this is Paul. I talked with Stephanie and she told me that Aurora is going to be with you all day tomorrow. I wanted to stop by and spend some time with my daughter." Paul explained the moment his former mother-in-law answered the call.

"Oh hi, Paul, that's fine. I'm sure it will be a nice surprise for Aurora. Vince is going to be home working in the office but you won't have to worry about him, you know he pretty much stays occupied with work all the time. What time can we expect you?" Linda asked politely, she was happy that her granddaughter's father was making an effort to see her.

"Hey Paul, your ex-wife has called into the Bubba the Love Sponge show, check it out, dude." John Morrison offered holding out one of his ear buds that was connected to his iPod Shuffle that was tuned into the podcast.

"Hey Linda, can I call you back in the next hour? Thanks, bye." Levesque said quickly getting Mrs. McMahon off the phone so that he could take the former MNM tag team member up on his offer.

Without any hesitation, Paul placed one of the ear buds into his ear. Sure enough, he heard his wife's voice speaking to both Bubba and Spice boy. Levesque quickly snatched up the other ear bud and put it in his other ear. He wanted to hear what his former wife was talking about.

"Hi Steph, how are you and Kurt doing? Thanks for calling in."

"We're doing terrific, thanks. This is my first time calling in to talk to you guys. Kurt would have called in today but he's working out messing around with his mixed martial arts." Steph explained.

"She sounds hot, doesn't she Bubba?" Spice boy commented causing Steph to laugh.

"Oh so where are you? Are you home or the office?" Bubba asked.

"I'm with the kids. I had a half day at the office." Stephanie replied.

"So how are things in WWE? Kurt's back with you guys and he seems to be enjoying himself. Is business going well?" Spice boy asked.

"Things are going well. We're just coming off of a very successful pay-per-view,, Night of Champions, which fans can still catch the replay of via their cable or satellite provider."

"So it was a good show?" Spice boy asked.

"Yes, we had a stacked card. Every championship in the company was defended. And my husband, Kurt, put on a stellar performance with Jeff Hardy."

"Listen to her, getting her little company plugs in there. So how long have you and Kurt been together?"

"Tomorrow is our one year wedding anniversary."

"You don't have any kids together, do you?"

"Yes, yes we do. We have a son named Andrew. He'll be a year old this coming month."

"Oh that's right, Kurt mentioned his new baby before. And of course Kurt has his two kids he had with Karen. Do you have any other children?" Bubba asked into the microphone.

"Yes, I have a three year old daughter, Aurora, that I had with my first husband, Triple H."

"That's right, you were married to Triple H first. And then what? You divorced him and married Kurt? We're you and Kurt screwing around while you were still married to Triple H?" Spice boy asked not holding any of his questions back.

"No, Kurt and I started dating when I was getting out of my relationship with Triple H. Kurt didn't have anything to do with the end of my first marriage. Triple H and I had our own problems." Stephanie told them.

"What kind of problems, Steph? He wasn't stepping out on you was he?" Bubba the Love Sponge asked causing Steph to fall silent for a few seconds before speaking again.

"Yeah, there was infidelity on his part. It got really messy. But it's in the past and we've moved on with our lives." Stephanie admitted.

"Wow, who would ever cheat on the boss' daughter. He had it made, man. Now Kurt has it made. So do you and Kurt get along with Triple H? Are you guys able to co-exist for your daughter?" Bubba asked.

"Oh yeah, we really have strived to be civil to one another because it's our three year old that has to be in the situation of being a child of divorce. But Aurora is doing great. She loves Kurt. She even calls Kurt her daddy. No matter how many times Kurt and I correct her, she keeps calling him Daddy. I think it's because I call him that for my eleven month old. It's really cute."

"Well that's great you all have been able to make things work for the children. I'm interested to know your views on Kurt's ex-wife, Karen. I don't know if you know this, but I'm still friendly with Karen and she recently called into the show and had a few words to say about you and Kurt." Bubba told Stephanie.

"Oh God…" Steph replied.

"You know that she doesn't have great things to say about you then?" Spice boy asked.

"Karen has disliked me since Kurt and I got involved. And that's a shame because I have never done anything to her."

"Okay well, I'm going to play what Karen had to say about you the other day on our show. Let's play it." Bubba instructed.

"Stephanie McMahon is nothing but a two faced home wrecking bitch. She acts like she's all nice and innocent and pretends to be your friend while all the while; she's making a play for your man. She seduced Kurt and got herself pregnant by him so that he felt obligated to divorce me and marry her. That's her game and if you don't believe me ask Chyna because she did the same thing to get Triple H, except she didn't get pregnant." The former Mrs. Kurt Angle explained.

"Stephanie, is any of what Karen said true? Did you steal Kurt from her? Are you a home wrecker?" Spice boy asked trying to get Stephanie to speak about Karen's accusations.

"None of it is true. Her and Kurt were over and getting a divorce when Kurt and I became more than friends. It is a shame that she chooses to believe differently. I really would like to get on good terms with her because I want Kurt to have a good relationship with Kyra and Kody. Just like how Triple H and I get along for our daughter." Steph replied.

"She also mentioned how Kurt had to take an erectile dysfunction drug when they wanted to have sex. Now I know this to be true because I recommended Cialis for him because he told me he wasn't able to get going. She was bringing it up to attack Angle's manhood and embarrass him."

"I don't know anything about that. Since I've been with Kurt, he's never taken any of those drugs for ED. He performs to very high standards on his own. So it must have been something on her end." Stephanie quickly retorted causing the guys in the studio to laugh.

"Enough of this bullshit…" Paul muttered grabbing the ear bud from his ear and tossing it aside.

He had heard enough of Stephanie's call in to the Bubba Love Sponge Show. As if hearing his ex-wife discuss her new husband's ability to perform wasn't enough, he had to hear her tell blatant lies about how well they were getting along for the sake of their child. Who was she kidding? Was Steph trying to come across as the perfect mother and ex-wife in order to look good for her company's sake? Levesque hoped that all the viewers listening in to the show and the hosts themselves would see right through her put on bullshit. He should do an interview himself and tell everyone the real truth about Stephanie McMahon-Angle.

"I didn't know you and Stephanie were so close still, Levesque. That's so touching." John Morrison said beginning to snicker. He had been listening to the interview too using the other ear bud.

"Fuck off, would you? You'd have to be a jerk off to believe a word she says." Paul retorted.

Instead of waiting for Morrison to leave, it was Levesque who took the initiative to walk away. He was still replaying Stephanie's words from the interview in his head. The more he continued to think about it, the more it angered him. His ex-wife new damn well that he had been miserable ever since the divorce a year ago. She knew that ever since the dissolve of their marriage, things had been awkward between them to say the least. By lying during her call in to the show, Steph was pretending that his real feelings about her did not exist. This was an underhanded move; a low blow.

Paul exhaled sharply before he programmed his cell phone to call Linda McMahon again. He brought his phone to his ear and waited while it rang. He was living up to his word of calling his former mother-in-law back. Despite his frustrations with his ex-wife, Levesque wasn't about to take his anger out on her mother. Linda had always been civil to him ever since the divorce last year; she was just about the only McMahon to be civil.

"Hey Linda…yeah hey, do you know what Angle and Stephanie's plans are for tomorrow…oh no particular reason, I'm just curious…Oh as far as you know they are just having dinner out…Yeah I know that restaurant…Yeah, okay, I'll see you…Bye." Paul said into the phone before ending the call. He then put the phone away in his pocket.

Levesque's mouth formed a smirk at the sight of Torrie Wilson exiting the divas' locker room. Her on camera backstage role in WWE allowed her to keep in touch with some of her friends from the days where she was on the active roster.

"Hey Torrie, you look really nice today." Paul complimented her with a nice smile. He had immediately noticed that she had already been in the hair and makeup chair for the show.

"Oh thanks, Paul. How are you doing? Are you hanging in there?" Torrie asked showing her concern for him. The last time they had a chance to talk was the night in the bar when he had told her about the ending of his marriage.

"Yeah, I'm doing all right, but you could do something for me that would make me feel even better." Levesque smoothly replied as he walked with Torrie down the hallway.

"Well, that depends on what you want me to do…What is it?" She asked tilting her head slightly while she smiled at him.

"I want you to spend the day with me tomorrow."

Torrie's mouth opened slightly as her eyes, that were focused on Levesque, widened. She was surprised by Paul's proposal. While she figured that he had appreciated her company the other night in the hotel bar, she had chalked it up to him needing someone to talk to in his moment of loneliness. Was him asking her to spend the day with him tomorrow a round about way of asking her out on a date?

"Thanks for the invite, but how would we spend the day together? I'm flying to New York tomorrow morning to do a media appearance." She replied explaining why she couldn't take him up on his offer.

"Well, I'm flying home to Connecticut tomorrow morning. I could drive to New York and pick you up from there. We can make a day out of it. We can spend part of the day in New York if you like. Or I can take you back to Connecticut with me and show you around. There's a great restaurant that I'd love to take you to for dinner. It will be fun. What do you say?" Levesque asked tossing out another idea to her as he used his fingertips to slightly caress the soft skin of her right arm which made her smile. His touch gave Torrie goose bumps. He certainly knew how to use subtle contact to flirt and make her feel special.

"Sure, why not." Torrie said with a smile. His sweetness and charm made it impossible for her to not take him up on his offer. Despite it being short notice, Paul driving to New York to spend time and take her out to dinner would be the most fun and spontaneous thing she had done in a long time.

"Well, I have your cell number and I'll call you when I'm on my way…" Paul told her in a sweet sounding voice. He was mirroring Torrie Wilson's sweetness and politeness which he knew would only endear her more to him.

"Okay…" She whispered in a reply.

Torrie blushed as he took hold of her and gently brought it to his lips. He tenderly kissed the back of her hand. It was like a scene out of an old fashion movie with Levesque playing the part of the gentleman caller. His charm was laid on thick; thick enough to leave Torrie standing there blushing and somewhat weak in the knees. She was putty in his hands.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fourteen

Kurt and Stephanie arrived at the McMahon mansion a little after three o'clock. They had spent the first part of their day with the children at home. Steph and Kurt wanted to have some quality time with the kids on their one year anniversary. Of course Andrew didn't have any idea that the day was different from any other and his older sister, despite being told, still didn't grasp the concept.

"Oh you two look great! Happy anniversary!" Linda McMahon gushed after opening the front door of her home to let her daughter and son-in-law in.

Angle was dressed in a fresh pressed suit that had a matching tie that Linda was sure her daughter had picked out for him. Steph was wearing a gorgeous red sparkling dress that made her red carpet ready. The couple was obviously going all the way out for their first anniversary, and rightfully so.

"Where's Pop's little grandson? Where's my future franchise wrestler? Come to Pop." Vince said aloud the moment he walked up to the Angles who were still in the vestibule of the home. He had arrived and taken Andrew from Stephanie just as Linda was about to do so.

Baby Andrew was wearing a white and orange striped shirt with a dark blue neckline under cute little navy blue overalls which had a light blue smiling whale on the front of it. His little feet were bare, since his mother had carried him from the limo. His little sandals were in his diaper bag if he needed them.

"Hi Dad, nice to see that you are actually leaving the study while you're at home with Mom." Steph commented with a smile as she watched her father make over her youngest child. He seem to ignore her comment for he didn't answer, instead he stayed focused on Andrew.

"Hi Aurora sweetheart, come give Granny a big hug! Oh I missed you!" Linda exclaimed taking Aurora into her arms. She wanted to make a big deal out of greeting her granddaughter because Vince had made such a big deal out of seeing the baby. Linda didn't want little Aurora to think that baby Andy's arrival was any more important than hers.

Steph had dressed Aurora Rose in an adorable green summer dress with a watermelon embroidered on the front of it which the three year old kept grabbing with her hand while still in Linda's arms. Aurora's hair was gathered up on top of her head to create a little palm tree with her baby fine hair.

"Kurt, I already see an improvement in Swagger's ring work. Whatever you're doing with him, keep up the good work. You might whip that boy into shape before you two even start your feud. I've got a good feeling about it." Vince complimented his son-in-law as he finally diverted his eyes from his youngest grandchild in order to look at Angle.

"Thanks Dad, the kid picks up quick on what I tell him. I think after sometime working with him he might just be a main event player. He has an impressive amateur wrestling background." Kurt replied as he lined up all the children's essentials in the hallway; from car seats and diaper bags, to a playpen, foldable high chair and booster seat.

"Mom, thanks so much for being flexible enough to take the kids overnight. I know we gave you short notice when we decided to change our plans and go to New York for dinner and an overnight stay." Stephanie told her mother feeling a bit guilty for dumping both of her children onto her parents for the night after only several hours notice. Linda was still heavily involved in the corporate side of the business so she frequently remained busy with work, just like Vince.

"It's our pleasure. Vince and I love spending time with our grandchildren. I told you that I spoke with Paul yesterday, right? He is planning on coming over sometime during the day to visit with Aurora. Since it's after three now, I hope he isn't going to be showing up late tonight." Linda told her daughter putting Aurora back down on her feet.

"I'm just glad he's taking this opportunity to spend time with his daughter." Steph said with a smile. It made her very happy for her daughter to hear that her ex-husband was making an effort to be in her life.

"Make sure you guys don't leave my son unattended with Levesque." Angle told his mother-in-law in somewhat of a serious tone of voice. Mrs. McMahon found his request a bit bizarre as she looked at him puzzled with confusion.

"He wouldn't do anything to the baby, I told you that. Besides, I don't think Dad is going to let his grandson out of his sight." Steph quickly replied, smiling after that last comment about her father. She was watching Vince beam with pride while he watched his grandson speak nonstop gibberish to him with a wet smile.

"Kurt, why don't you hang out with me for a bit in my home office. We can bounce some ideas around and have a few drinks." Vince offered giving his son-in-law a swift pat on his upper arm.

"No thanks, the limo is waiting, Steph and I have to shoot up to Stamford. There are a few loose ends Steph needs to take care of in the office before we go to New York. You know how the staff is lost without her."

"So what do the two of you have planned for your anniversary evening?" McMahon asked showing his curiosity about their plans in New York City.

"We have dinner reservations at Le Cirque. I've got a few surprises planned for my wife."

"Really?" Steph asked with a smile turning her head sideways slightly. She had been wondering what Kurt was going to do for their first anniversary. She had already given him her gift earlier in the day while at home with the kids. Stephanie wondered what he had in store for her.

"And we are stay at the Plaza hotel tonight in a suite." Kurt said after giving his wife a smile and a nod.

"Okay, well we need to get going. Mom, do not hesitate to call either of our cell phones if something comes up with either one of the kids." Stephanie told her mother before she gave her son a quick kiss on his head.

"We will manage just fine." Linda replied with a smile as she watched Steph bend down to say goodbye to her three year old.

"Be a good girl for Pop and Granny and have fun spending time with your daddy, okay sweetheart?" Steph whispered to her little girl. She gave her a quick hug and then Kurt did the same with both children. After they said their goodbyes, the left quickly. Stephanie had found that prolonged goodbyes would have a tendency to upset Aurora and the baby as well. It was best to say goodbye once and then quickly slip away while the children were preoccupied with something else, in this case, their grandparents.

"You know, I'm really having a great time." Torrie told Paul as she grabbed hold of his bent arm with both hands while they walked down one of the not so busy street of New York City.

"You're saying that like you are surprised." Levesque replied with a smile tensing the muscle in the arm that Torrie had her hands on. This caused her to slip her closest arm around his muscular arm so that she could walk close to him.

"Well, to be honest, I thought us going out might be a little weird since Stephanie and I used to be so close. And you know, she's your ex-wife and all."

"Well do you feel weird?" Paul asked shrugging his shoulders slightly.

Torrie smiled and shook her head before she answered his question.

"I feel comfortable being with you. It's hard to find a guy who is intellectually stimulating and can carry on a conversation without having to brag about himself all the time."

"I guess Spirit Squad Nick and Kidman didn't measure up to that standard, huh?" He asked with a cocky smile as he chewed on his small piece of white mint gum.

"Be careful, don't make me take back that compliment I just gave you." Torrie replied and then ran her tongue over her shiny glossed lips before letting out a laugh that caused Paul to chuckle.

"Yo Triple H! Can we get an autograph and a picture?"

The voice caused both Paul and Torrie to turn and see a few WWE fans approach them with their cell phones in hand. When they now saw who the blonde woman was that Levesque was with, they were even more excited to get a picture with the diva.

"Triple H, are you and Torrie dating?" One of the guys asked as he held his phone up to take a picture.

"Yeah we're on a date actually." Paul replied putting his hand around Torrie's waist to pose for a picture with her as two guys stood by them.

"For real? What does Stephanie think about that?" Another one asked.

"I don't know and I don't really care. We're divorced so it doesn't really matter what the ice bitch thinks." Paul explain plainly as he signed a small sheet of paper that one of the guys handed to him before handing it to Torrie so she could do the same.

The fans laughed at Paul's comments. They were a bit surprised that he would say something derogative about his ex-wife to fans and so was Torrie. Her mouth gaped open slightly as she looked over at him. Why would he use the opportunity of his ex-wife being brought up to publicly disrespect her? What was going on in his mind? Was he serious about dating her? He sure had no trouble telling fans that they were dating.

"So we've been talking about me this whole time, what about you?" Torrie asked once the fans left and they started walking again.

"You know everything. I told you my whole sad story in that hotel bar. I was married to Steph, I screwed up once, and I lost it all; a wife and a daughter." Paul said summing it up in a single sentence.

"Yeah I know all that, but that's in your past from a year ago. What are you doing now?" She asked, still not satisfied with the same information Paul wanted to give to her. She wanted to get to know more of him and not more about his failed marriage.

"Well, right now I'm talking to you. And I'm thinking how lucky I am to be in the company of such a breathtakingly beautiful woman." He quickly replied without missing a beat.

"Oh please, you're such a charmer. I'm being serious, Paul." Torrie laughed giving him a playful punch into his hard chest.

Paul stopped at the corner of the street and turned to face her. He was looking right into her green eyes with a look of sincerity. Torrie blinked a few times as she felt his hand softly caress her jaw line before he opened his mouth to speak.

"I am being serious. I feel like a jerk off saying this but I've always found you attractive. Ever since the first time I saw you. I never had any intentions of acting on it until you came back to WWE. I think it was fate that our paths crossed again at this point in both of our lives. Being single again, I thought I'd take a chance and ask you out."

Torrie couldn't contain her smile as she felt her cheeks begin to warm from flattery and a little bit of embarrassment. She wasn't used to being treated with such care, even on a first date. Sure there had been men who would try to woo her which she easily saw right through. Paul however, seem different. His hazel eyes looked brilliant and true. In the back of her mind, Torrie couldn't help but wonder how Stephanie could have ever let him go.

"Well, I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't attracted to you too. I'm glad you decided to ask me out." She whispered back placing both of her hands on his bearded face.

"I am too." Paul replied with a smile taking her hands from his face and into his large hands. He gently rubbed his thumbs a few times over the backs of her hands before he spoke again. His eyes glancing down at their hands for a moment as he caught sight of his watch that he quickly turned into his view for a quick second.

"We should be heading to Connecticut. I don't want us to run into traffic."


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifteen

"Here comes the yummies. Yum-yum-yum-yum-yum!" Linda said with enthusiasm when bringing a small white rubber coded spoon to her grandson's mouth. Andrew's eyebrows went up and he let out a little squeal to allow his grandmother to put the small bit of mushy baby food in his mouth.

"Andy likes that kind of baby food. Mommy feeds it to him a lot now." Aurora commented to her grandmother. She was sitting in her booster seat at the table eating her dinner of chicken tenders in the shape of stars.

"He has a good appetite doesn't he, Linda? He's going to grow up big and strong. He's going to be a wrestling machine just like his daddy." Said Vince the moment he walked into the kitchen and saw Andrew Vincent in the high chair being fed.

"I'm eating all my food too, Pop! Look!" The three year old announced to her grandfather when she saw him giving all his attention to her little half brother. She held up her plastic Dora the Explorer plate so that he could see the small amount of food she had left.

"Oh wow, well I guess I know a little girl who's going to go with her pop to get some ice cream." Vince replied with a smile turning to look at his granddaughter.

"I want ice cream!" Aurora exclaimed clapping her hands together while beaming with excitement. She looked just like her mother. It reminded Vince of when Steph was his little baby girl. It didn't seem like that long ago.

"Linda, we'll be back. I'm going to run Aurora to the creamery and get her some ice cream." Vince told his wife as he lifted Aurora out of her booster seat.

"No, Aurora has to stay here. Paul is going to be coming over here to spend time with his daughter. I don't want him to show up while you and Aurora are gone. I don't know when he's going to show up." Linda explained spooning in more baby food into Andy's mouth.

"That's bullshit. We shouldn't have to inconvenience our day for him. He's had all day to come and see her." Vince replied quickly.

"Language, Vince." Linda warned him pointing to Aurora. She didn't want him cursing in front of either of the children, but especially the three year old because she would repeat whatever she heard.

"Aurora, do you want to go for ice cream?" Vince asked looking down at the little girl, leaving the decision up to her.

"I want to go with baby brother. He wants ice cream too, Pop." Aurora Rose told him as she pointed up at Andrew.

"Andrew isn't finished-"

"He's fine. Little man wants some ice cream for desert. Come here, little guy." Vince said cutting off his wife as he lifted the baby from his high chair. McMahon was overjoyed at the idea of taking two of his grandchildren out and about. It was a rare occurrence when he took time away from work and enjoyed life; especially life as a grandfather. If only Shane's sons were there.

"Vince, do you want me to help you with that?" Linda asked as she stood by watching him struggle with the baby's car seat. Aurora was securely buckled into her pink high back boaster seat and was watching her grandfather struggle.

"No, I want you to go inside and let me do this myself." Vince told his wife as he fiddled with the front safety harness that went across Andrew's chest. He had finally got the seat anchored into the middle of the backseat and was now trying to figure out the correct way to strap the baby into the car seat. Vince was a very intelligent man, how complex could this car seat be? Andy began to fuss a bit while McMahon let out a few lines of obscenities.

"Don't say bad words to my baby brother!" Aurora said aloud to her grandfather as her half brother started crying. In her mind, Vince was cursing at her little brother and making him cry.

"You be quiet." Vince replied pointing over at the three year old. He had a stern look on his face, showing his frustration with getting the baby into the vehicle. The last thing he wanted to hear was his grand daughter giving him orders.

Aurora scowled, her pink bottom lip protruding before she folded her arms and glared at him. Even at the age of three, like her mother, she didn't like anyone telling her what to do let alone telling her to stifle.

"You got something to say?" Vince asked Aurora after he popped a pacifier into the baby's mouth. He was taking note of the three year old's look of defiance. She was reminding him of Stephanie. She was headstrong just like her mother.

"No, I'm quiet…" Aurora quickly muttered back before she looked out the window of the car. It was when Vince finally secured Andrew into the baby seat that he left the backseat. Aurora took note of his departure from the car.

"You okay, baby?" She asked in a whisper while she leaned over and gently kissed her little brother's right tear stained cheek. This caused Andy to smile underneath his pacifier in her direction. With their mother's absence, it was like Aurora had taken the role of little mommy. She really loved her little half brother ever since the day he was born and she came to visit him in the hospital. So far, sibling rivalry wasn't an issue.

"Mr. and Mrs. Angle, happy anniversary, welcome to Le Cirque!" The host said graciously in a thick French accent the moment he saw Kurt and Stephanie enter the restaurant hand in hand. The Angles reservation for their anniversary made them one of the VIPs of the evening. This would explain the royal treatment that was being bestowed upon them the moment they walked through the door.

"Yeah, thanks, sorry we're a bit late. We ran into some traffic." Kurt replied allowing his wife to walk in front of him so that they could make their way though the crowded restaurant to their table for two which the host lead them to.

Angle pulled out his wife's chair for her before taking his seat right across from her. They both were smiling scanning the atmosphere of the upscale New York restaurant. This was their first time eating there. From what they had experienced so far, they were both glad that they had changed their plans and were trying something new in celebration of their first full year of marriage.

"Thank you." Steph said politely with a wide smile as the host handed her a menu and then one to her husband.

"You are very welcome, Mrs. Angle. Your waiter for the evening will be with you momentarily. I hope you enjoy your dinner and have a happy anniversary." The host said giving a slight bow before he left the table.

"Thanks man, we will." Kurt replied before he turned his focused to his wife sitting across from him.

"You really do look beautiful tonight, Stephy."

Kurt had taken Stephanie's hand in his in the middle of the table. He was beaming with happiness that the gorgeous woman sitting across from was not only the woman that he was in love with, but his wife. After everything he had gone through with Karen, Kurt was thankful to finally have a marriage to a woman who truly cared for him. Unlike Karen, Stephanie didn't care about how much money he made a year. She had her own career and made her own money. It was all their money. They shared everything.

"Thanks, you look really handsome yourself. It's so nice to get away for a night without the kids. I swear, you are not a parent until you have two children." Steph replied with a chuckle.

Stephanie of course was commenting on how much the parental landscape changed for her with the birth of her second child a year ago. When it was just Aurora, Steph felt like it was easy to set aside time to spend with her baby girl. After all, Aurora Rose was her one and only and she only had to chase after her. Now, with baby Andrew beginning crawl and toddle around, she found herself constantly having to watch him while making sure not to leave Aurora unsupervised. It would only take a matter of moments for the curious three year old to get into trouble. Two kids really kept Steph on her toes.

"Yeah, this feels like a second honeymoon. Just think, at this time last year you were nearly nine months pregnant and we were worried that you might go into early labor on our honeymoon." Kurt joked with a chuckle that Steph mirrored as the waiter approached.

"Oh wow, it's Kurt Angle and Stephanie McMahon. My second night on the job and I get to serve you guys. It's an honor and a pleasure" The waiter said the second he approached the table. He was looking back and forth between the couple.

"Thank you but ah, it's Stephanie McMahon-Angle, actually." Steph corrected with a sly smile and a raised eyebrow before continuing. "Babe, how about some wine?"

"Yeah, let's have some. Can we have a bottle of red wine please? Whatever expensive great tasting red wine you would recommend."

"Certainly sir, I'll bring you a bottle of Pinot Noir." The waiter replied before leaving.

"French red wine? I hope it tastes good." Steph commented to her husband as they waited for the young waiter to return.

Once he did, he poured a bit of the wine into Kurt's wine glass so that he could taste it before committing to buying the bottle. Angle took a second to taste it before he gave his wife a nod and then the waiter, signaling for him to pour more into his glass and then his wife's.

"Let me just give you guys a run down of the appetizers we have available for you tonight. We first have Fluke Crudo with basil with cavaillon melon, and chipotle. We also have White Almond Gazpacho and to the side smoked paprika shrimp. Thirdly, we have Heirloom Tomato Salad that is accompanied by ciliegine and olive brioche. To contrast, we also serve a Grilled Octopus Salad that includes chorizo aioli and fingerlings potatoes. And lastly, we have a Sheep's Milk Ricotta Gnocchi with Burgundy escargot, summer vegetables, and bagna cauda." The waiter recited.

"Wow, and you remembered all of that? I don't think I could remember and recite that. Honey, do you know what appetizer you want?" Kurt asked.

"I think I'm going to try the Heirloom Tomato Salad." Steph replied looking up from her menu.

"Very good m'am, and for you sir?"

"No appetizer for me, thanks. I just think I'll stick with a main course."

"Kurt, it's our anniversary. You should splurge and go off your dietary plan for one night. One night of a calorie fest isn't going to kill you." Stephanie told her husband as soon as the waiter left to put in their order. She took a sip of her wine and waited for him to reply.

"It's not that, honey. It's just none of those appetizers sounded good to me." Angle explained while looking at his menu.

Levesque's red Hummer pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant he planned to take Torrie. The very restaurant that the Angles were planning to have their anniversary dinner at. Paul circled the small parking lot a few times on the look out for Angle's white Cadillac Escalade or his ex-wife's tan Porsche Cayenne without what he was doing being obvious to his date. He didn't see either automobile.

"Why is it taking you so long to park?" Torrie asked taking notice of the amount of time it was taking him to settle on a parking space.

"Oh, I just want to make sure I park the Hummer away from most of the cars. I always worry that someone is going to bang up the body with their car doors." He was quick to explain, finally settling on a spot that was in the far corner of the parking lot.

Torrie seem to be convinced by his explanation. She took his hand in hers while they walked across the parking lot and into the restaurant's main entrance. Paul was more than happy to have her hand in his, he could imagine the look on Stephanie's face if she saw him walk in with the beautiful Torrie Wilson on his arm.

Once inside the restaurant, Paul's eyes quickly inspected the immediate surroundings. The place was crowded, it being after seven. In the quick seconds he took to look around, he didn't see Steph. She was probably seated with Kurt somewhere further into the restaurant out of sight from where he now stood.

"Why don't you go and get seated, I just need to run to the rest room really quick." Torrie said leaning over to say it in his ear like she was telling him a secret. She was obviously being as polite as she could in such an upscale restaurant.

"Okay, I'll wait here for you and then we'll get seated together." Levesque replied with a kind smile that she mirrored before slipping off to the clearly marked restrooms to her left.

She was making this easy for him. Torrie making herself scares would allow him to find out about the Angles' arrival. Paul took this opportunity to talk with the host who was stationed at his desk with a telephone to his right ear. When he saw Paul approaching, he politely put the call on hold.

"Good evening sir, will you be dining alone this evening?"

"No, I'm just waiting for my date to come back from the restroom. Hey, I was wondering if you could look up reservations for friends of ours, Kurt and Stephanie Angle." Paul told him leaning against the desk as he spoke.

"The Angles are regular guests. I don't even think they have to make reservations. They pretty much just show up and are seated. My boss isn't here right now, he knows them pretty well and he might know if they are coming in for dinner tonight. I can ask him when he gets in if you want and let you know." The host replied.

"Yeah, please do that. I'm pretty sure they are planning on eating here tonight." Levesque said before walking away from the host's desk so that he could stand in the place where he was when Torrie left for the rest room. He didn't want her to have any idea what he had been up to while she was gone.

"Thanks for waiting for me. I didn't mean to hold things up." Torrie commented with a smile the moment she returned. While she was happy he was a gentleman and waited for her, she also felt bad because she knew he was ready to be seated and have dinner after all the traffic they encountered coming from New York.

"No, you're fine. Let's get seated. You'll like this restaurant." Paul replied quickly gesturing for her to follow him to the host desk so that they would be seated.

"This has been the best year of my life, Stephy." Kurt admitted after he took a bite of his food. He was gazing lovingly across the table at his wife.

"Mine too." She replied reaching to caress his hand before she took a sip of her wine.

"Just think, one year ago you were almost nine months pregnant with Andrew and walking down the aisle."

"Oh God, I was huge. I'm so glad I didn't have to wear a white dress, it would have been worse." Stephanie replied remembering how she looked on her wedding day to Kurt because of the pregnancy.

"You were gorgeous; the most beautiful pregnant woman I'd ever seen. And as a wedding present, just a couple of weeks later, you gave me a healthy son." Angle continued, rubbing her hand in his.

Stephanie couldn't help but beam with happiness. She loved hearing her husband profess his love for her and their infant son. Especially since he only found out about his baby later on in the pregnancy. For a while there, it was Paul who believed the baby was his. Steph really had not been one hundred percent sure who the father was until the amniocentesis. Even before she found out for sure, she had chose not to tell Paul that there was a possibility it was Kurt's child. Maybe she did it out of spite to get back at him for how badly he had hurt her with his cheating.

"I'm just happy you were able to forgive me for walking out on you to try and make my marriage to Paul work." Steph finally replied after a moment of reflecting on the past year.

"Let's not even bring him up. This is our night as a couple to celebrate our marriage. You can't even rely on the guy to be a stable father for Aurora. Shit, I'm more of a daddy to Aurora then he is." Kurt told his wife after swallowing a bite of food.

"I know, you're great with Aurora, but I'm not giving up on Paul just yet. I think him making plans to see Aurora today is a sign that he's going to start stepping up to the plate. That would be great." Steph commented causing Angle to roll his eyes.

Angle smiled as he watched two waiters arrive at the table. One removed their finished plates while the other placed a covered dish in front of Stephanie. She looked confused.

"I didn't order any desert. You know I'm trying to lose the remainder of my pregnancy weight." Stephanie told her husband while giving him a confused look because she knew he had something to do with its arrival.

"Why don't you look under the plate cover?" Kurt replied with a smile as he sat up straight in his chair wearing a large smile. He was anticipating her looking at what was inside.

"Kurt! I love it! Oh my God, it's beautiful!" Stephanie exclaimed with excitement the moment she saw the diamond bracelet arranged on the plate that had been disgusted as desert. She quickly picked it up and eyed the large sparkling diamonds.

"You're beautiful, babe. Here, try it on. I know it's going to look great on you." Angle replied enthusiastically before he reached across the table to help his wife put it on.

"Aw, thank you, baby. I love it." Steph gushed after it was on her arm. She held it up, allowing the light to make the diamonds sparkle.

"Hey Angle, what happened to your MMA aspirations? Your mouth writing checks that your ass can't cash? Brock Lesnar would kick your ass in the cage!" A man hollered after stumbling over to the Angles table. Both Kurt and Stephanie looked startled by the rude interruption that came out of nowhere.

"You're drunk, you need to go sit down and leave me and my wife alone." Kurt muttered softly as he pointed for the guy to walk away from the table.

"You're a pill popping nut job, Kurt Angle! You're washed up! You wouldn't last a minute in the octagon with a real MMA fighter!" The intoxicated man continued pointing his finger in Angle's face.

"Can we please get some security here? This man is harassing my husband! Please get him out of here!" Stephanie yelled, getting over the initial shock of it all. She was getting pissed off now by the nasty interruption to her anniversary dinner.

"I'm very sorry, Mr. Angle. This man has obviously had too much to drink." The host apologized while the restaurant security forced the drunk man out of the restaurant.

Angle simply lifted his hand and waved the host on as a weak signal that he understood and accepted the apology. His other hand, he had placed on his forehead covering part of his face, as if to hide it out of embarrassment or sadness. The hateful words were sinking in. Was that what the common wrestling fan really thought of him? Did they all think he was washed up and not fit to ever try mixed martial arts?

"Kurt, are you okay?" Stephanie asked her husband as she saw his demeanor change. He was somewhat withdrawn from her and had a far away look in his eyes.

"I'm fine…" He muttered softly. His eyes darted down at the white table cloth where they stayed focused.

"I love you, Kurt. And I love the bracelet." Steph said, her voice full of love.

Angle's mouth formed a weak smile, her words causing him to finally look back up at her. Slowly, Steph began to lean over the table for a kiss, in which Angle met. Her hands she placed on his cheeks while she kissed him back. Their kiss was somewhat passionate but not over the top since it was a public display of affection.

"The food was really good." Torrie commented in order to break the awkward silence at the table.

Levesque had been completely preoccupied with keeping an eye out for his ex-wife. All through dinner, he kept looking around, trying to spot Stephanie. Torrie was obviously reading into his behavior as him losing interest in the date. She was trying to stay up beat and into the date, even if he wasn't.

"Yeah, it was okay." Paul replied after a pause. It had taken him a few seconds to actually internalize what she had said to him.

His eyes had caught sight of a brunette who had just walked into the restaurant. From where he was sitting and at that angle, it could very well be Steph. The woman was walking toward them but he still couldn't see her face. Paul flung into action the second he thought she was going to look his way. He leaned over and gave Torrie an unprompted kiss on the lips which lasted a good ten minutes even though it started out somewhat awkwardly. The young blonde wasn't expecting a kiss. Despite it being out of nowhere, she quickly started to enjoy it. When the lip lock broke, Levesque was quick to turn and look where he had last scene who he thought was Stephanie. She was closer now and it was then that Paul saw her face. It wasn't his ex-wife. His face showed his disappointment as he turned back to look at Torrie who was just opening her eyes. She smiled at him, happy that he had made a move on her. Paul gave her a smile back, masking his frustration.

"Mr. Levesque, I talked to my boss. He told me that the Angles did have reservations for tonight but they canceled them earlier today." The young waiter reported after walking up to the table.

Paul's mouth parted slightly. Why did ever agree to have the kid come tell him about the Angles? Levesque turned to look at Torrie. Her green eyes were wide with surprise. It was like he could see the wheels begin to turn in her head. She was putting it all together. Did she now know the real reason he had brought her to that restaurant? With the departure of the waiter, came the return of the awkward silence. Torrie looked like she wanted him to say something. She obviously wanted an explanation. Paul was having to think on his feet. Luckily, he was a smart guy and it didn't take him but a moment to come up with something to say. The question was, would Torrie believe it? Was the romantic relationship he was trying to create with her already ruined before he would even get to flaunt it in front of Stephanie?


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Sixteen

"Paul, what's going on? Why are you asking about Stephanie and Kurt?" Torrie asked finally in order to break the silence that was becoming more and more awkward as the moments past.

Levesque shrugged nonchalantly and slightly shook his head. Without words, he was already trying to smooth over the situation. It was buying him sometime to firm up the details of the story he was going to lay on her.

"The truth is that I had just made plans with Stephanie to see my daughter today. Since it is my ex-wife's anniversary, my daughter is already at her grandparents house. I had made these plans after I asked you out yesterday. I didn't want to break my plans with you but I also didn't want to miss this opportunity to see my child. I would have wanted to take you with me to visit Aurora, but I was afraid you would feel uncomfortable. Like I was taking things too fast, maybe. I wanted to take you out to dinner here in Connecticut so that after, I could go visit my baby girl." Paul explained giving Torrie a look that beckoned her sympathy.

"Aw, I would have loved to spend time with you and your daughter." Torrie gushed, loving the idea of not only spending time with Paul, but getting to know his little girl. After she spoke there was a slight pause before she continued her inquiry.

"So explain to me why the waiter came to our table to tell you that the Angles aren't here, as if you were asking about them."

Paul acted like her questions didn't even phase him. He took a nice slow sip of his wine before setting it down on the table. Levesque ran his tongue over his bottom lip, tasting the residue of wine that had been left there from his hearty drink. There was no way he was going to give her any hint of uneasiness. He had fooled people who were smarter than her before.

"I did ask about them. Stephanie wasn't answering her cell phone. I called her while you were in the rest room because I wanted to let her know I was going to be late to visit Aurora. I know they frequent this restaurant, so I asked if one of the managers had any other contact numbers for them, like Angle's cell number. That's all." Paul said calmly to give the impression of it all not being a big deal.

"Why didn't you just call Stephanie's parents since Aurora is with them?" Torrie quickly replied not missing a beat in pointing out the inconstancy to his story. It didn't make sense for him to call his ex-wife when his daughter was with her grandparents for the day.

"It's no big secret that Vince hates my guts now. He started treating me like shit when things started going bad in my marriage to his daughter. If I called him and Linda and told them I would be late to visit, this would give them another excuse to hate me and bad mouth me to my little daughter. I would rather just deal with Stephanie. If that makes sense."

Torrie's look of suspicion quickly faded and was replaced by a much more sympathetic gaze. She felt bad that she had forced him to talk about his problems with his former in-laws. This was great first date conversation. Paul would probably never want to ask her out again.

"Yeah it makes sense…Sorry, I didn't mean to pry into the whole custody arrangement you and Stephanie have worked out for your daughter. That's really sad that the McMahons can't get over the past and be nice to you for the sake of their grand daughter."

Paul could sense Torrie's sympathy for him. It would be the perfect thing to play off of in order to get him out of his current predicament. He lowered his head and gave his best grief stricken look that he thought she would take notice to. Levesque let out a long sigh, allowing the emotion to wash over him and with that came a few small streams of tears from his hazel eyes.

"Aw, Paul, are you okay? Is it something I said?" Torrie asked caringly placing her hand on his broad shoulder is she leaned forward, giving him attention. She felt so bad for him. He must really love his daughter to get physically emotional about her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get all emotional like this…It's just, my little girl doesn't want to be with me and I miss her so much. Stephanie and her family make it so hard for me to see her. They would like it if I just wasn't in her life at all. I just want my baby back…" Paul muttered through some more tears that he didn't bother to wipe away. He let them stream down his face until it was Torrie who brought her hand to his face to do so.

"That's terrible. I know you mentioned before that things weren't always civil between you and Stephanie's family but I had no idea it was this bad. Paul, we should go see your daughter right now. It's not too late in the evening. You have a right to see her, they can't stop you." She explained.

"I don't know, I really don't want to drag you into all of this mess that is my life. If I go there tonight, I'll have to face Vince…"

Levesque really didn't want to get into an altercation with his former father-in-law. Triple H had recently began to garner some wins on SmackDown. If Paul went against Vince directly, he was sure he would be right back to his weekly jobbing. At that position in the company, there was no way of him being at the top.

"You need to face him…For Aurora. She's your little girl and she needs to be with you. I'll be right there with you, okay?" Torrie assured him as she began to caress his hand with hers as it sat on the table.

"No, we don't need a bell boy or anything. We can find our room just fine." Kurt told the woman at the front desk of the Plaza after they were checked in. He gave Steph a smile before taking her by the hand after taking the room keycard into his possession.

They had no luggage to have taken to their room. And they were in a hurry to get to their suite. An empty elevator was awaiting for them. Stephanie smiled as Kurt put his arms around her and slowly backed her up into the left elevator wall. He brought his left hand to the control panel of the elevator and pressed the number four.

"I can't believe you had a horse drawn carriage waiting to take us to the Plaza after dinner. You're really going all out tonight." Stephanie whispered between soft tender kisses that she gave her husband's lips.

"You haven't experienced anything yet, babe. Just you wait until we get in our room…" Angle replied giving his wife a smirk which she returned. He then went in for a deep kiss that caused Steph to sigh.

Stephanie loved the idea of having a romantic evening alone with her husband. While they had a loving first year of marriage, it was rare that they were able to make love without the possibility of being interrupted by a crying baby, a cell phone, or a toddler who had woken up in the middle of the night and was afraid of the dark. Her parents had the children and she knew they were being taken care of.

"Wait, I have to open the door." Steph giggled after Kurt made her turn around to face him, pressing her up against the door to their suite.

Ever since they had exited the elevator on their floor, he hadn't been able to keep his hands off of her. She had taken the keycard from his hand because it would the only way she would get into the room, Angle seemed happy to make love in the hallway. She struggled with the keycard, trying to fit it into the slot in the door while her husband continued to kiss her passionately without any sign of letting up.

"No, no, Kurt, wait, wait! Hey, wait! Not in the hallway! Help me open the door!" Steph laughed aloud feeling her husband's kisses move to the nape of her neck. His right hand was sneaking up her dress.

Stephanie had to pull her dress back down for he was exposing her in the hallway. While there was no one there to see what was going on, she was sure the security cameras were recording them. In one quick motion, Angle pushed the door handle causing the door to open abruptly. Steph began to laugh as the both stumbled into the room before allowing the hotel door to slam closed behind them.

"Don't they look so precious?" Linda asked her husband in a whisper the moment he walked into the living room.

After Vince returned with his grandchildren from the creamery, he went right back to working in his home office. It wasn't until now, later in the evening, that he was taking a break from his work. As he sat down next to Linda, he saw what it was that she was looking at.

She had been watching her grandchildren who were both sleeping in the playpen that she had set up in the middle of the carpet floor. Aurora was lying right next to her little half brother Aurora Rose slept on her side facing the baby. Her little arm was even draped across the baby's tummy like she was hugging him close even in her sleep. This didn't bother Andrew in the least, as he slept on his back soundly.

"Why is she in the playpen with him? Did you put her in there?" Vince asked Linda with a smile. He was a bit surprised to see his three year old grand daughter in the baby playpen that was suppose to be just for the baby.

"She told me that she needed to climb in to keep her baby brother company because he was all by himself. It's so cute how she protects and loves him. I hope they remain close as they get older." Linda whispered back.

"She climbed in herself? I would be afraid of her tipping the playpen over, it's not that heavy." McMahon pointed out.

"I picked her up and put her in. You should have seen how happy Andy was to have his big sister in there with him. Everything Aurora would do, he'd start laughing." Linda explained. She loved reporting to her husband the adorable little anecdotes about their grandchildren.

The sound of doorbell echoed throughout the spacious mansion causing both Vince and Linda to get to their feet immediately. The noise they featured would wake the children, so answering the door as quickly as possible was important.

"Who the hell could this be?" Vince asked somewhat irritated by the late night visitor. His stride quickened so that he reached the front door before his wife. McMahon wanted to be the one to find out who was behind it.

There was Paul standing on the other side of the door. He was standing there ready to look his former father-in-law directly into the eyes. Vince gave him a cold stare before he took a brief second to glance over at Torrie Wilson who had accompanied Levesque.

"You've got a lot of nerve showing up at this hour. Weren't you suppose to be hear to visit your daughter earlier today?" Vince finally asked breaking the awkward silence. He made no effort to be hospitable by inviting either of them in from the heavy rain that was falling outside.

Levesque lowered his head looking a bit timid to make the bold move of requesting his daughter. It wasn't until Torrie gave him a gentle nudge, that he lifted his head. He looked over at her and she nodded, signaling to him that he needed to say what had to be said.

"Well I'm here now. I want to take my daughter home with me." Paul finally said turning his attention back to McMahon.

"Stephanie wanted Linda and I to take care of both her children over night while she celebrates her one year anniversary to her husband. She didn't say anything about you showing up late at night to take her daughter." McMahon replied holding up his hand to his wife who was trying to reply to Paul. He knew Linda was going to try and invite him in and treat him like he was still associated with her family. Vince wasn't going to have it.

"Aurora isn't just Stephanie's child, Vince. She's my daughter. No amount of telling yourself that Steph is saddled with Angle is going to change the fact that I am still Aurora's father, not Kurt Angle, me. Now you can either pack my daughter's things up and bring them and her to me now, or I can enter this house by force and take her. Either way, I'm leaving here with my child." Paul answered back getting right in Vince's face.

Levesque was sick and tired of being walked on and disrespected by his former father-in-law and boss. Ever since the miscarriage of his and Stephanie's second child and the Michelle North affair became known to the family, he had been punished over and over again by Vince McMahon. When was it going to end? Paul was done pay for it all. He was done allowing McMahon to decide if and when he was going to see his baby girl. Torrie Wilson's presence also provided more motivation for him to stand his ground. How would it look to the beautiful blonde if he allowed a sixty-three year old man control him and tell him what to do?

McMahon's eyes widened. His face began to turn a nice shade of red as he shook with anger. And right before he erupted, Linda backed him away from the door calmly with a single hand. She could see that things were getting ready to escalate and needed to be defused. Once she stood in her husband's place in the doorway, she gave Paul a polite smile.

"Aurora's asleep. I'll pack her little travel bag her mother sent her with and I'll bring her out to you."

Paul returned a kind smile to his former mother-in-law as a silent way of saying thank you. Unlike Vince, Linda was somewhat happy that he had shown up wanting to take his child overnight. This was the first time he had put himself out there and stood up to Vince for the sake of spending time with his little daughter.


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Seventeen

"That was incredible…Kurt, we're going to have to pay for those glass sculptures you broke when you pushed them off the counter. We should have gone right to the bed." Steph said as she tried to catch her breath.

"It was worth it. When's the last time we were able to have unbridled sex without having to worry about waking up kids?" Kurt replied with a smile, his chest heaving. He was resting his head against a pillow that was propped up on the bed board.

"It's been a while. You're still such an animal…My sex-asaurus…." Stephanie whispered back in a voice filled with lust. Her lips found his in the darkness. They kissed passionately and Angle slowly shifted so that he was back on top of his wife. The white linens stuck to his naked lower back from the glistening sweat.

"We're so good together…Every time with you is like the first time…" Kurt told her in between kisses to her neck which caused Steph to giggle and laugh out loud.

The sound of Stephanie's cell phone caused them both to look over to one side of the bed which was the direction they had heard the ring tone from. Angle quickly slid off of Stephanie so that she could answer her call.

"Shit, where is my phone?" Stephanie asked struggling to reach her clothing that was scattered on the hotel room floor right by the side of the bed she was closest to. It didn't help that Kurt's clothing was mixed in with hers. Just when the call was going to be sent to voice mail, she found the lit phone and answered it.

"Hello?" She said quickly as she retracted back into the bed with her husband.

"Stephanie, it's Dad."

"Dad, is everything okay? Why are you calling me this late? Did something happen to Aurora and Andrew?" Stephanie asked quickly sitting up in bed. Kurt did the same as he leaned over and turned on the bedside lamp where Steph's bra was hanging.

"That bastard, Paul, showed up here with Torrie Wilson after he completely blew off his visitation with his daughter earlier today. He was probably doing God knows what with her instead of coming to visit his daughter. I guess Torrie Wilson is his new whore of the month." Vince said into the phone, loud enough where Kurt could hear his words as well. Angle couldn't make out what exactly he was carrying on about; he could just hear McMahon's ranting.

Stephanie let out a sigh and rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe how upset her father was. You would have thought either Andrew or Aurora had a medical emergency by the way he was carrying on. Why did he even have to bring up the fact that Torrie Wilson was with her ex-husband. Even though Steph was a bit surprised that Paul would take Torrie with him to pick up his daughter. What did it matter? Stephanie didn't even know why she was thinking about him and Torrie. It was none of her business.

"Dad, that's his business. I'm just glad that he's taking the role of an active father for once. I can go get Aurora tomorrow or in the next few days. If this is all you called to tell me about then I'm going to say goodbye. Kurt and I are trying to enjoy our night alone together." Stephanie finally replied as she felt her husband's hand gently caressing her up and down her naked body while he kissed her neck.

"Oh, so I can expect another grandbaby soon?"

"Goodnight Dad." She replied quickly before ending the call and placed her phone on the nearby nightstand.

"What was all that yelling about from Dad?" Angle asked brushing Stephanie's hair way from her face.

"He called to tell me that Paul showed up and took Aurora with him to spend the night at his house."

"Well I hope we don't get a phone call from him asking you to come get her like he did last time." Angle said with a chuckle before he resumed his position on top of his wife, pulling the covers up over them.

"She looks so cute." Torrie commented.

Torrie was observing from the foot of the bed as Paul carefully placed his child in what was her bed at his house. It was touching to see such a man with such a large muscular frame being so gentle and caring. Aurora only moved slightly when her daddy gave her a kiss on her forehead.

She was so precious to him. Aurora was his little sleeping princess. The small child had an uncanny resemblance to her mother. Sure, he knew that she would have some of his ex-wife's features. Levesque had seen these since she was a little baby, but it was now, at the age of three, that Aurora was like her mother's little twin.

Paul took a few more extra moments tucking her in. He found himself lingering over her, gazing down at his child. It was a great feeling knowing that she was with him. For the first time in a very long time, Aurora was spending the night at her father's house. The evening would have been perfect for Levesque if not for one flaw. Stephanie was not with him. He would have given anything for Steph to be the woman standing at the foot of the bed while he tucked in their daughter. But she wasn't. It was Torrie Wilson. Not only wasn't Stephy with him, but she was with Angle. They were off celebrating their anniversary; a year of wedded bliss as she saw it, a year of an endless nightmare was more like it.

"Paul, are you okay?" Torrie asked. She was noticing an underlined sadness from him that she had not seen since the night she found him upset in the hotel bar. Why was he being so sullen when he had his little girl with him?

"My life will never be complete without her…" He whispered after an awkward moment of silence that came after Torrie's inquiry.

"Aurora's with you now. You should enjoy this time you have with her."

Little did Torrie know; Paul wasn't talking about Aurora. Steph was the one he couldn't see himself living without. Having his daughter with him wasn't enough. Without Stephanie, his family was incomplete. He knew why he had Torrie there with him. She was crutal in his plan to get his ex-wife back. But he really hated putting on a show. Sure, Torrie Wilson was a beautiful woman who he could see himself being attracted to, but he didn't want her. He had his fill of the young big breasted blonde when he was carrying on with Michelle North. Paul wanted to go back to the mother of his child, the future owner of World Wrestling Entertainment, Stephanie McMahon.

"She really looks like Stephanie." Torrie commented after she moved forward to be closer to Levesque. She placed her on gently on his back in a way to show her support. But the last thing Levesque wanted was it pointed out how much his child looked like his lost love.

"Yeah I know…" Escaped his lips in a mutter; it was all he was willing to say aloud. Surely it wouldn't behoove him to tell Torrie how he was really feeling. There would be no way she would still believe that he wanted a relationship with her. If he didn't have that, he wouldn't have the opportunity to make Steph jealous.

"How long is she staying with you?" Torrie asked tilting her head slightly to the side out of curiosity.

"I'm sure her mother will be by tomorrow to collect her. You know, since she'll be back from her anniversary retreat with Angle." Paul replied exiting her daughter's room while Torrie followed. He rolled his eyes after his mention of Kurt Angle.

"I think it's nice the Angles were able to get away for a romantic anniversary."

"Who cares about them, let's talk about us." He was quick to reply as he turned to look at Torrie while they stood in the dimly lit open hallway that overlooked the foyer below.

"You brought them up, I didn't." Torrie said back with a smile that caused Paul to give her one of his own.

Levesque was giving Torrie Wilson's body a good look up and down. He had to admit to himself. She was definitely a ten; sexy in any man's opinion. Just like Stephanie, Torrie had nice smooth long legs. He would be willing to bet she could wrap them tight around him in a many of positions he could get her into. So she was another blonde who wasn't Steph, but with the lights turned out, he could use his imagination. He needed a good romp. Even better though, would be the look on Stephanie's face if she found out he was banging her friend. Her jealousy would eat her alive.

"You want something to drink? I've got a full bar downstairs." Paul offered, trying to hint at his desire for intimacy. He had to be tactful and not just let her know he wanted sex.

"No, thanks, I should be going. It's getting late." Torrie replied with a polite smile while they began to descend the staircase.

"Hey, come on, where are you going to go? It's late." Paul said with a playful chuckle as he gently grabbed hold of her hand as she went to walk toward the small table where she had set her purse.

"Pauullll…" Torrie whined in a playful voice. She was smiling and she allowed him to pull her back and into an embrace. She placed her hands on his shirt covered pecs feeling his hands pulling her closer to him from where they were placed on her lower back.

"Let's make a perfect ending to a perfect day…You're so gorgeous and you smell so good." Paul muttered bringing his face to Torrie's neck. He gave the nape of her neck gentle kisses.

"I don't know if we should tonight…" Torrie whispered as she moved away slightly from his advances to show her uncertainty.

"I do, and I think we should…" Paul replied with a sly smile as his hands gave her bottom a hard squeeze. Torrie let out a hearty laugh and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I really should go, I think-"

"Shh, no more thinking…" Paul whispered cutting her off midsentence. Before Torrie had a chance to come up with a reply, he caught her lips with his in a full on kiss.

They both let out a long sigh, their embrace tightening as the kiss deepened. She was a decent kisser. Paul could see himself playing the role of lover with her. He opened his eyes for a moment to see if she looked into it. Torrie's eyes were closed and she looked to like their intimate kiss. He was in complete control and Torrie Wilson was soft putty in his hands ready to be molded and sculpted into his new lover for his ex-wife to be envious of.


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Eighteen

"Mommy?" Aurora called out the moment her head popped up from the pillow. She had slept through the night in her bed at her father's house. The three year old knew that she was no longer at her grandparents' house, so her mother must be where ever she was too. Without an answer or any sign of her mother, Aurora quickly pulled back the covers of the bed and got out of it.

"Mommy, where are you?" Aurora cried out. Her voice this time was whiny as she was now on the verge of crying. She rubbed her eyes with her right hand as she moved toward the doorway of her room.

"Paul, she's awake." Torrie called back to Levesque as she stood in the hallway. She had thought she heard the child from inside the master bedroom and had left to check. She was wearing one of Paul's large t-shirts that came down to her knees, covering her naked body adequately.

"I want my mommy." Aurora blurted out through tears the moment she saw Torrie Wilson walking toward her.

"Oh, sweetie, it's okay. You're at your daddy's house. Come here, little one." Torrie said in a soothing hushed voice and she quickly scooped Aurora into her arms. Her motherly instincts had taken over without her even thinking about it.

"Mommy! I want my mommy! I want my mommy and my daddy!" Aurora continued to demand through her tears while Torrie tried to comfort her.

"Look, sweetheart, there's your daddy. Do you want to go to him?" Torrie asked in a loving voice the moment Paul joined them in the hallway in his briefs. She turned so that Aurora could see her father standing there.

Paul walked up to them, ready to receive his child the moment Torrie offered the three year old the option to be given to him. Aurora shook her head and turned away; her crying did not cease. Torrie looked at Paul with a confused look on her face. She would have never expected his own daughter to be so upset while being with him. Wasn't she used to spending time with him?

"Aurora, look, it's a little kitty cat. Do you see it?" Torrie asked in a loud voice, so that she could be heard over Aurora's crying jag. She had turned around and was going back into the child's bedroom; her finger pointing at a nearby pink shelf.

"Kitty cat?" Aurora asked, her crying suddenly came to a halt because Wilson had peaked in interest in something other than her mother.

"Look, it's a baby kitten, Aurora. Isn't it cute?" She asked enthusiastically, stopping at a Fur Real friends newborn kitten toy that was sitting on the shelf. It was just one of the toys that Paul had bought and placed in his child's room indiscriminately.

"It's a baby kitty?" Aurora asked with tears still in her eyes as she looked at Torrie.

"Shh, yeah, don't cry because it will scare the kitten. You're the kitten's mommy so you can't scare her. Do you want to hold and pet her?"

Torrie's question got an immediate response from the small child as she nodded with her mouth gapped open as she starred at the new unfamiliar toy. With her free hand, Torrie took the toy and with one of her fingertips, flicked the small black switch on the bottom of the toy. The kitten purred and made small realistic movements that mimicked a real kitten that was just born. Aurora's eyes widened when she saw the toy move, her hands reached out for it.

"This my kitty cat?" Aurora asked the moment Torrie placed the toy in her arms.

"It sure is…You have to be the kitty's mommy. You can't cry because it will scare her. Will you pet and hold the kitty?" Torrie asked in a sweet voice.

"Yeah…" Aurora replied not taking her eyes off of the moving toy. She was now smiling and stroking the fake fur on the toy.

Torrie looked up and smiled over at Paul who was amazed by her ability to calm Aurora right down. If only she had been there to do so the weekend after Aurora's third birthday which was the last time she had been with him. Perhaps Torrie was even more useful to him than he thought. In addition to being pretty damn good in the sack, she actually had a way with children. Levesque felt great. He actually got laid the night before and now he now had his daughter with him and she wasn't having a meltdown.

Levesque heard his cell phone beeping from inside his master bedroom. It was letting him know that he had an incoming text message. He gave his new girlfriend a quick smile before he left the hallway to grab his phone from his nightstand. His face formed a smile when he saw that the text message was from his ex-wife.

"Hey, Kurt and I are back from NYC, do you want me to drop off some clothes and things for Aurora?" Was what the message read.

Stephanie was giving him the opportunity to make a play already. The events were sure lining up themselves. He was able to talk Torrie Wilson into staying the night with him and now he was going to be able to flaunt that fact right in front of Steph. Without hesitation, he thumbed out a reply and sent it back to his ex-wife.

"I think I should get dressed and be on my way. I have to get back to Houston." Torrie said as she entered the bedroom with Aurora following her. Little Aurora was still holding on tight to her new toy kitten like it was gold.

"Hey no, stay with me for the morning…You look really sexy in my t-shirt and I could really use your help with Aurora since you seem to have a way with kids." Paul replied in a sweet and loving voice as he approached his girlfriend. He was doing his best to play his part as a loving new beau with the hope she would stay at least until Stephanie showed up.

Torrie tilted her head to the side and smiled showing that she was thinking about staying the morning at his request. She was watching him as he put on his white cloth robe to cover his muscular frame and briefs.

"Okay, I'll stay…" Torrie finally said. She moved forward and took each end of the tie on Paul's robe and tied it for him. He leaned in and gave her a nice long kiss so that she knew that she made the right decision.

"You don't have any clothes for her to put on?" Torrie asked Paul while she lifted Aurora into the boaster seat Paul had put into one of the kitchen chairs.

"There weren't any clean ones in the travel bag her mother sent. I'll see about getting some clothes from Steph in a bit. I just want to get some breakfast in her." Levesque explained as he bent over and gave his little girl a kiss on her forehead. Aurora was very much content as she sat there with the toy kitten on the kitchen table. She was still petting the fake kitten fur.

"Hey, can you get the door for me? I think it's just a package being dropped off. I'll be right there. I just want to give Aurora her breakfast." Paul told Torrie the moment the doorbell rang.

"Yeah sure, no problem, I'll bring it in." She said quickly leaving the kitchen. Once she left the room, a smile formed on Levesque's face. It wasn't UPS or the US Postal Service. He knew exactly who it was. He just wished he had a camera mounted outside of his front door so he could see the look on Steph's face when she saw Torrie.

Torrie walked into the foyer and approached the front door. She unlocked and opened the door to find out who was showing up on Paul's doorstep in the midmorning. Her eyes widened and she gave a smile showing her embarrassment when she saw Stephanie McMahon-Angle standing there in front of her. This looked really bad. There was Paul's ex-wife, and not to mention her old friend and co-worker standing in front of her while she wore nothing but an oversized t-shirt and her thong.

"Hello Torrie." Stephanie said politely as gave her old friend a quickly smile. Her eyes quickly scanning the barely clothed woman while she placed a bag containing Aurora's clothing on the front porch so that she could move Andrew to her other hip.

"Hi Steph, this is an unexpected surprise…" Wilson replied sheepishly. She didn't know what else to say.

"Yeah well, Paul said I could drop off some clean clothes for our daughter. I didn't mean to interrupt anything." Stephanie replied

"Oh, you weren't interrupting anything." Wilson assured her.

"Hey Paul! Stephanie's here with clothes for Aurora!" Torrie then shouted out from inside the house. She was eager for Levesque to make it on the scene so that he could share some of the awkwardness with her.

Wilson heard Paul respond and then she turned back to Stephanie. She noticed little Andrew who was now resting his head on his mother's shoulder; his little forehead pressed against Steph's neck. He was softly sucking on his pacifier; his eyes looked heavy and a little glazed over.

"Your son is adorable, how old is he?" Torrie inquired. It was a way for her to take the attention off of her and the uneasiness of the situation and put it on the cute baby.

"Thank you, Andrew is going to be a year old in a few weeks. He's not feeling very well this morning. Kurt and I picked him up from my parents' house earlier." Steph replied before giving a soft kiss to her son's soft left cheek.

"Aw, yeah I can tell he doesn't feel well. Poor little guy."

Finally Paul graced the women with his presence at the front door. He was still in his robe that was now opened a little in the front to obviously expose a bit of his muscular torso. When Stephanie saw her ex-husband, she gave him a nice smile before pointing down at the back of clothes that she had sat next to her on the porch.

"You had to bring the kid with you?" Levesque asked in a voice that showed his annoyance. He folded his arms like a child who was getting ready to pout. He didn't understand why Angle's kid had to be with her. Why couldn't she have left him in the car? Or better yet, why even bring him at all.

Torrie noticed the change in Paul's demeanor. Why did he care if Stephanie brought her infant son to drop off Aurora's clothing? Why was he letting a simple thing like that upset him? Stephanie was being nothing but polite and pleasant given the circumstances that she arrived to find, with both Paul and herself not yet dressed. He wasn't acting like the Paul she had spent the night with. In fact, he was acting as if he wasn't surprised at all by Steph's arrival. Did he ask her to come over?

"Kurt wanted to get his seven mile run out of the way before it gets too hot so I brought Andy with me to drop off the clothes for his sister." Steph was quick to explain. She was slowly swaying back and forth as a reaction to the baby beginning to fuss a little.

"Wow, what a model father!" Paul retorted with fake enthusiasm as he shot his ex-wife a mean look.

The fact that Stephanie brought up her husband, the man that Paul detested, really got under his skin. Angle could have the morning off free of responsibility and that was completely fine with her. If it would have been him, she would have called him selfish for working out instead of taking care of his sick child. But of course, the "Olympic Wonder Boy" was held to a different standard as a husband.

"Paul, I'm going to take a quick shower. Stephanie, it was nice seeing you. I hope your little one feels better soon." Torrie said cutting through the tension that she could see was building. She needed to excuse herself from the situation.

"Nice seeing you too, Torrie. And thank you." Steph replied back as Wilson quickly slipped away from the foyer toward the staircase.

"I could do without the childish comments…" Stephanie finally said to her ex after Torrie was now out of sight and earshot.

"Well, I'll take the clothes now. I'm sure Torrie is going to want some company in the shower. I'm sure you already knew that we're seeing each other." Paul said keeping his eyes of her as he moved to grab the bag of clothing.

"Paul, that's your business. I really don't want to hear about it. Aurora is staying with you. The whole point of you taking her last night was that so you could spend some time with her. How necessary was it to have an overnight guest when you have our child for the night?" Steph asked being completely honest about her view of the situation.

"It's no different than you and Angle. The two of you fornicate under the same roof as our daughter all the time. Hell, Steph, you two were even doing that when we were still married. So spare me the parenting lecture, huh?"

"Kurt is my husband and we are very discrete. And if you are going to point the finger on the topic of marital indiscretions, you most definitely have three fingers pointing right back at you. I'm sorry, Paul. I don't have all day to stand outside your house and bicker with you. I have a sick baby to take care of. Just please promise me that you'll use this time you have with Aurora to be with her. Don't leave her by herself." Steph replied looking her ex-husband directly in his eyes.

"Oh come on, would you please? She's in the kitchen having breakfast. I was with her when you showed up. I've been perfectly attentive to her. She's my child. If anything, I think you should be more worried about that m.m.a obsessed husband of yours being neglectful of our child." Paul quickly replied giving his ex-wife a look to show how ridiculous she was being.

Before Steph could reply, Aurora's loud cry could be heard from inside the house. It was only the cry from their daughter that was able to end the quarrelling between them.

"Aurora?" Stephanie said aloud. Her voice was full of concern as she walked right into the house without even asking if she was allowed entry. It was her daughter who was crying, and she needed to go to her.

Paul was just as quick to spring into action. He followed in ex-wife closely behind, trying to keep up in his slippers. Even though Steph wasn't familiar with the house, she had no trouble following the sound of her crying child.

"Oh, Aurora, are you okay? What happened, honey?" Steph asked running to her child's aid.

The chair and booster seat that Aurora had been sitting on was now on the floor along with the three year old. She was sitting up, yet still on her side in the position she fell in. Next to her was the toy kitten. The sight of her mother only made her crying intensify as she reached out for her. Steph set Andrew on his wobbly feet after crouching down next to her fallen child. Andy quickly grabbed hold of his mother's shirt to keep himself steady of his feet. He was being whiny himself after being put down.

"Aurora, tell mommy how you fell." Steph instructed her daughter as she helped her to her feet. The three year old continued to cry and she put her arms around her mother, just wanting to be comforted.

"She was completely fine when I left here sitting there eating." Paul said in his defense as he stood right next to Stephanie. He would have never left her in the kitchen by herself if he knew that her somehow hurting herself was a possibility. She wasn't a little baby anymore.

"Aurora, use words, what happened? How did you fall on the floor? Tell Mommy." Steph said speaking clearly and at a volume that her crying daughter could hear and understand what she was asking of her over her own crying.

"Kitty cat falled down." Aurora finally said as she reached out for the toy on the floor. She grabbed it and looked back at her mother; the tears still rolling down her cheeks.

"Were you trying to reach the kitty and you fell too?" Steph asked, now having an idea how her child ended up on the kitchen floor.

"Yeah, kitty and me falled down…Kitty's okay, Mommy, see?" Aurora replied holding up the toy for her mother to inspect. She seemed to be calming down.

"Yes I see that. I'm glad you're okay too." Steph responded while pulling down on her daughter's pajama top to pull it down all the way. It must have gotten bunched up when she fell.

"Mommy, we going home now?" The three year old asked turning her head to the side as she looked at her mother inquisitively. When Stephanie didn't answer right away, Aurora grabbed hold of her mother's hand and started trying to walk toward the hallway.

Steph raised her eyebrows as she looked at her little girl. She then glanced at her fussy son, and then up at her ex-husband. To Paul, it actually looked like she was debating on whether or not she would take Aurora home with her. This was supposed to be his time with his daughter. It really hurt him that Aurora only thought of the Angle home as being her home. This, his house, was just as much as her home as theirs was.

"No, Aurora. You're staying with Daddy. Your mommy is going back to her house. You'll see her tomorrow. You have a home here with Daddy too." Paul told his daughter. He wasn't going to give his ex-wife the chance to decide if Aurora was going to stay with him or not.

"No, I go with Mommy… I go home now…" Aurora muttered in a long whine. She was now wearing a pouty face that showed she was expecting to get what she wanted.

She was starting to get emotionally upset again with the idea of staying with her father and her mother leaving without her. At the age of three, she already liked the idea of having things the way she wanted them and would become very upset if she didn't.

"You really want to go home? Don't you want to be with Daddy?" Steph asked her child as she pointed up at Paul so that Aurora would be completely clear on who Daddy was. Stephanie turned to look at Levesque but Aurora placed her hands on her face and made her look at her.

"Let's go home. I go home pweaze." Aurora said looking directly at her mother. She even added a 'please' to her request. Stephanie and Kurt had been working with her to use 'pleases' and 'thank yous' when asking and getting things.

"Okay, well Daddy needs to get your stuff together and we'll head home." Steph finally said picking up baby Andy as she finally stood up.

"Woah, hey, she's not going anywhere. This is my time with her." Paul said to his ex as she blocked Stephanie's path of exiting the kitchen.

"It was up to her if she wanted to say. She said she wanted to come home with me." Stephanie replied trying to go around her ex-husband.

"She's only three years old. She isn't old enough to make the decision of with who she spends time with. It's my right as her father to have her for another day. This isn't negotiable, Steph." Levesque said as he moved again and cut off her stride.

"Fine, what do you want to do, Paul? Do you want to try and explain to her why she has to stay here while her mother and brother leave? She doesn't understand joint custody. This has nothing to do with me trying to keep you from seeing her. I know you are her father, but this is about Aurora. I don't want her to start associating the feeling of being left and detached from me with spending time with you. Do you want that?"

"No, I don't want that…"

Levesque knew what she was saying. If he was to force Aurora to stay with him, in her eyes, he was the bad man who was keeping her apart from her mother. He didn't want his baby girl to see him that way. Paul wanted his child to want to be with him; not to be forced to do so. He was so tired of being the bad guy in every situation.

If only he could get back together with Stephanie. If they could start over together, everything would be okay. Their daughter wouldn't feel the need to have to choose her attachment to her mother over bonding and spending time with him. He wanted more than anything to tell Stephanie that. He wished he could convince her of how much he still wanted to be with her. But how could he? There she was trying to pack up their daughter and leave his house with Kurt Angle's child perched on her hip. There was no way she was going to take him seriously.

"Will you please get her things together and help me put them in my car?" Steph asked after a moment of silence.

"Yeah, sure…" Levesque muttered. He was resigned to the fact that his time with his daughter was coming to an end.

Paul collected all of his daughter's things that her grandmother had sent with her. He then brought them and the back Stephanie had brought outside to Stephanie's Porsche Cayenne that was parked and running toward the end of his driveway. Steph was already getting the children settled in for the ride. Andrew was already in his car seat, and now his mother was helping his sister get buckled in.

"Thanks for getting the stuff together and carrying it out." Steph said giving her ex a smile to show her gratitude. She took the bags from him after stepping down from her automobile. She then walked to the back of the car to place the stuff in the back. This allowed Paul time to say goodbye to his child. He approached his little girl who was now content and playing with the toy kitten.

"I love you very much, Aurora. And I'm sad that you are going home early. I love being with you. And I'm very lonely without you and Mommy." Paul told his daughter. His voice was full of sincerity as he stroked her hair. Its color and texture reminded him of Steph and how he used to run his hands through hers.

"Take kitty cat." Aurora told him as gave her father a warm smile and then held out her toy kitten to him.

"That's your toy from Daddy." Paul replied not wanting to take it from his daughter.

"Kitty will make you happy. Kitty keep you company, okay?" Aurora asked dangling the toy out of the car for her father to take.

"Thank you, sweetheart." Paul replied feeling somewhat choked up by his daughter's cute attempt o make him feel better. It showed him that she obviously cared about him and how he was feeling. He took the toy and in return gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Slowly, he closed the car door.

"Take care, Paul. I'll call you soon and we can set up a time when you can have her again for a few days." Stephanie said walking back to the driver side door.

"Maybe we could set aside some time where both of us could be with her…together." Paul suggested as he opened the car door for Steph before she had the chance to.

"Yeah, I think that's what we'll have to do." Steph replied with a smile before getting into the car. Just like he had done for Aurora, Paul closed the door for his former wife.

He stood there and watched her put the Porsche into reverse. Before she turned around to look so that she could back out, she gave him a little wave goodbye which he mirrored with a smile. It was when she slowly backed out of his driveway that his smile melted away. The two most important people in his life were leaving him and going home; their home that was with another man.

Torrie peered down from the upstairs window while Stephanie's tan Porsche pulled away with Levesque watching. Her lips parted with her mouth gaping open slightly, as she saw the look on Paul's face when he turned around to walk back toward the house carrying the toy. He looked so unhappy. Torrie was upset herself. There was no way Stephanie had just shown up without letting Paul know she was coming over. Why would Paul not give her a heads up about his ex-wife showing up?


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Nineteen

"Hey…" Paul said in a nice voice with a smile as he walked into the master bedroom. The moment his eyes caught sight of Torrie though, his smile faded. She was quickly getting dressed and had not even bothered to look up at him.

"Is everything okay?" Levesque asked wanting Wilson to explain why she was getting dressed in such a hurry.

"Why don't you tell me?" She finally said, breaking her silence. She looked him in the eyes waiting for him to tell her what was going on.

"Is this about Stephanie showing up? I'm sorry about that. I did tell her that she could come by today and drop off clothes for my daughter. I didn't know that she was coming over so early." Paul quickly explained. He was very good about covering his backside.

"There was Stephanie standing on your doorstep and there was me dressed in nothing but your t-shirt! It was mortifying! How does that make me look? Her little daughter was in the house with us!" Torrie yelled pulling down on her shirt after putting it on.

"It wasn't that big of a deal. You were adequately covered up. We didn't do anything that was inappropriate in front of Aurora."

"I shouldn't have stayed over. I mean, I slept with you after only one date. This relationship is getting too serious too fast."

"I don't feel that way. We've known each other for years. And I really care about you, Torrie. I felt like we were ready to move to the next phase of the relationship." Levesque replied as he approached her and gently caressed her arm.

"I saw how childish you acted toward Stephanie. And I saw Aurora leaving with her from the window. I think you need to focus on making things civil between you and your ex-wife. From what I've seen, it's affecting your relationship with your daughter. You aren't in a position to start a new relationship." Torrie told him as she plopped down on the king size bed to put on her high heeled boots.

"That's bullshit. My relationship with my daughter and my ex-wife is fine. Why are you giving excuses to put a damper on our feelings for each other?" Paul asked as he quickly took away her second boot before she could take it and put it on. He wasn't going to let her leave until he convinced her to side with him.

"I saw how detached your daughter is from you. All she could do was ask for her mother and want to go home. If it wasn't for the distraction of that toy, she would have been inconsolable. You need to spend time with her; and having me as romantic interest in your life is only going divert your attention from your child. Now please give me back my boot." Torrie said holding her hand out.

It was like Stephanie had gotten to Torrie and had given her a script to say to him. Wilson sounded just like his former wife. Why didn't these women understand his position? Could no one see how difficult it was for him to garner time with is child? It seemed to be even harder to get any alone time with Steph. And even if he did, it would be wasted by them bickering back and forth. He loved her and wanted her back, but every time he would see her, the inevitable mention of Kurt Angle would cause the jealousy to boil over. Paul would end up saying things that he knew did him no good. He couldn't help it. The thought of Stephanie being in love Angle was too much for him to overlook. Paul wasn't able to exercise the self-control needed.

Torrie adopting Stephanie's viewpoint and attitude prompted Levesque to lose his false sweet and loving pretenses and speak to her with his true feelings and fustrations. It all just came out before he was able to reign himself in.

"Where the hell do yo get off telling me what my problems are? For someone who is worried about taking a relationship too fast, you sure spread your legs like a Romanian gymnast for me last night! Taking it too fast, huh? You can so easily dive right in to my personal issue like some armchair psychologist telling me what I need to focus on and do! We fucked once, that's it! Once the sweat dries, you don't know shit about me and my situation!" He yelled throwing the boot back to the floor in front of her.

Torrie's eyes were wide with shock. His hostility seemed to come from no where and it frightened her. Levesque was behaving in away that was completely off the wall. She had never seen him like this. She couldn't get away from him fast enough.

"I know you're an asshole…" Wilson muttered after quickly putting her last boot on power walked out of the room leaving Paul behind.

Torrie wasn't going to wait for him to escort her out of his home. She was not only surprised by his rapid change in behavior, but also by her error in judgment to get so involved without taking the time to get to know him away from work. For someone who was already married and divorced once, she should have been much more cautious about getting into another serious relationship. Especially with a guy like Paul who brought his own past with him. It wasn't the fact that he had a child from a previous marriage that bothered her. Torrie thought Aurora was precious and enjoyed the child's presence. It was the sense of disconnect and general cluelessness that Paul portrayed about his own daughter along with his unprovoked animosity toward his ex-wife that was unsettling to her.

"Superficial bitch…" Levesque muttered to himself when he heard the sound of his front door slamming shut.

What a waste of time she was. Not only was the bitch overly opinionated about his personal life, but Stephanie didn't seem to bat an eye when his sexual relationship with the blonde was flung in her face. The only positive thing he believed to glean from the experience was getting laid and even that was a simple replacement for masturbation. Besides, it wasn't like he was making love to her. The entire time, he was fantasizing that she was Stephanie. What a poor substitution when what he really craved was the real thing.

Stephanie was the real and true thing. When he was in bed with her, he had always felt so powerful. Being the man who was sleeping with the boss' daughter gave him such a right to entitlement. He knew who he was when he was with Steph. Levesque was the son-in-law of Vince McMahon and future co-owner of World Wrestling Entertainment. Well, he was before his most important identity was taken from him. Stephanie had pushed him out of her family and replaced him with Kurt Angle. It was Angle now that was now poised to take the reins alongside Stephanie when Vince's time was over. It was that Olympic kiss ass who had his legacy engrained into the McMahon family when he had fathered a son with Stephanie. The very son that at one time Levesque had foolishly thought was his.

The game wasn't over yet. While the idea to use Torrie Wilson to make Stephanie jealous and want him back, didn't seem to work, there had to be another way to sabatoge the new family she had made for herself. Afterall, as Levesque saw it, a family without him, was not a true family for Steph to have.

"Hey babe, you're just getting home?" Kurt asked his wife in between breaths when he saw her getting out of her car.

He had just walked into the garage of their home after his strenuous run. Angle was dressed in only a pair of dark blue gym shorts and a pair of white athletic sneakers. His shirtless body drenched in sweat, his chest heaving a bit.

"Yeah, I ended up bringing Aurora back with me. She was ready to come home." Steph explained greeting her approaching husband with a quick kiss.

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Angle asked under his breath before flashing his wife a smirk.

"Don't you start with the sophomoric comments. I already heard enough of them from Paul this morning." Stephanie replied opening the backseat driver side door where Aurora was seated.

"Do you need help bringing anything in?" Angle offered noticing the bags in the back of the Porsche.

"You could start with getting your son out of the car and carrying him inside. And then it would be great if you could get the rest of bags I can't carry in one trip." Steph instructed as she quickly unbuckled Aurora's safety seat.

"We go inside now?" Aurora asked as soon as Stephanie sat her on her feet inside of the garage. The three year old had turned back around to see her mother picking up the bags from the back of the Porsche.

"Hang on, Aurora. Mommy and Kurt are coming, be patient." Steph quickly said back. Asking her daughter to be patient was asking for a lot. The three year old liked to be on the go and really didn't understand having to wait for anything.

"Come on, little buddy." Kurt whispered with a smile as he lifted his child out of his car seat and stepped down to the garage floor with the baby securely in his arms. Andrew let out a few lines of gibberish vowels out from around his pacifier while resting his head on his father's broad shoulder.

Angle opened the door that connected the garage to the rest of the house and allowed Aurora to run inside first before following. He left the door open for his wife who he knew was right behind him with a good number of bags.

"I'm home, puppy!" Aurora exclaimed with enthusiasm as soon as she ran into the living room. She picked up a brown stuffed puppy dog that was sitting on the carpet floor where she had left it. She hugged and kissed the toy before setting it down.

"Hey Steph, he's still feeling warm to me. When did we give him the first dose of Tylenol?" Kurt called out to his wife as he sat Andrew gentle down on the carpet floor.

"Uh, we gave it to him when we got home at nine and it's now almost eleven. We could give him another dose. I think we should take his temperature again. We need to know if it's just a low grade from teething or if it's something to worry about." Stephanie replied back from in the kitchen where she sat the bags down.

"I hope he isn't getting sick." Kurt commented entering the kitchen on his way back to the garage to get the remaining bags.

"That makes the two of us." Steph muttered removing the contents from the first bag.

Andy began to whine and fuss as he began to crawl to the side of the living room that was in view of the kitchen. This was so that he could see his mother and try and get her attention.

"Mama-mama-mama!" He cried out in a whine after removing the pacifier from his mouth and flinging it a few feet away.

"Mommy's coming, Andrew. I'm getting your medicine to make you feel better." Steph replied moving to the other side of the kitchen to grab the liquid Tylenol bottle so that she could get fix his dose.

Andy continued to whine as he grabbed on the nearby sofa used it to pull himself to his feet. With his right arm, he reached and grabbed the soft baby blanket that was folded on the leather sofa cushion and pulled it off and onto the floor. He then plopped back on his diaper cushioned butt so that he could grab hold of the blanket. Taking two handfuls of the soft light blue material, he brought it to his face and rubbed it against his forehead while continuing to whine.

"What's wrong, baby brother? Don't put the blanket on your head." Aurora told the infant as she went to him after he put the blanket on top of his head, continuing to rub it across his face. She pulled the blanket off of his head and used it to cover his legs causing him to cry.

"He's not feeling well, sweetheart. He's trying to sooth himself." Steph told Aurora as she looked over at her children.

"It's okay, brother. Don't cry…" Aurora whispered into the baby's ear as she hugged him from the side and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Her words did little comfort him as he continued to fuss.

"He won't stop crying." Aurora reported to her mother as Stephanie quickly approached. The sight of his mother coming toward him made Andrew hold up his arms, signaling that he wanted her to pick him up.

"Baby Andrew is feeling yucky." Steph told her daughter as she scooped the baby up and held him close.

Andy quickly calmed from simply being held by his mommy. He closed his eyes and snuggled close to her as Stephanie walked with him back into the kitchen. Aurora followed them closely behind like a little tail. She looked concerned about her little half brother.

"Oh yeah, his fever is spiking. Just keep him still, honey, I'll give him a dose of Tylenol." Stephanie told Kurt after reading the digital ear thermometer while Angle now held their son.

"Do you think he's okay? He seems really upset." Kurt asked his wife as he stroked his baby's soft head of hair with his hand. Just like Steph, he was a bit unsettled by how fussy Andrew was. He was usually a content baby. Something had to be really bothering him.

"I know, I'm worried about him. I'm going to call the pediatrician and see if I can Andy in to see her. I just don't like not knowing why he's sick. I hope Aurora doesn't get what he has as well." Steph replied looking over at her daughter that was standing right next to her looking up at them with concern for her baby brother.

"I not feel good too, Mommy. My tummy hurts." Aurora whined to her mother as she grabbed hold of Stephanie's clothing and pulled on it.

"You're feeling sick now too?" Stephanie asked crouching down to her daughter's level and placing her hand on her daughter's forehead. She was wondering if her three year old was truly feeling under the weather or if she was trying to get some of the attention that was being directed toward Andrew.

"My tummy feels yucky and my head does too." Aurora whined putting her arms around her mother's neck causing Steph to take her into her arms for an embrace.

"Did she have breakfast at her father's house?" Kurt inquired after hearing the symptoms his step daughter was experiencing.

"No, I falled down and my breafast wasn't eated." The three year old said to answer his question before Stephanie could do so.

"She's probably just hungry. If you want to make her breakfast, I'll put Andrew in the tub and try and get his fever down." Angle offered swaying back and forth from where he stood to try and sooth his agitated son.

"That's a good idea, you go ahead and take Andrew. I'll make Aurora some eggs and call the pediatrician."

Angle gave his wife a smile and a nod before going upstairs with the baby. Stephanie put Aurora at her usual spot at the table in her booster seat with Welsh's grape juice in front of her in her favorite Dora The Explorer cup.

"You're going to feed yourself like a big girl and not get any food on you, right?" Steph asked her child with a smile before setting the plate of scrambled eggs in front of her next to the little fork that she had already placed on the table.

"Yes, I eat it by myself. It looks hot." Aurora replied leaning forward to examine the food that was just presented before her. She could see the steam rising off the fluffy yellow eggs.

"Make sure you blow on the food before you take each bite." Steph quickly replied before picking up the kitchen phone and dialing the number to the pediatrican office that was listed in her handy blackberry.

"Yes, hi, I'm Stephanie McMahon-Angle. My son is running a fever and I was wondering if it would be possible to get him in to see Dr. Mott today. Does she have any opennings when she could see him?" Steph asked the moment the office receptionist answered.

"Actually m'am, we had a cancelation leaving an opening for eleven o'clock. I don't know if you would be able to get to the office that quickly."

"Oh that won't be a problem. I can get him there."

"I'm going to need your son's name."

"Andrew Vincent Angle." Stephanie quickly responded as she watched her daughter eat her breakfast. Aurora was finally mastering the art of feeding herself with the fork.

"Okay, thank you, bye." She said before ending the call. With the appointment time only a half an hour away, Steph knew she was going to have to hurry to get the baby there in time.

"Is Daddy giving you a bath?" Steph said aloud the moment she walked into the master bathroom.

The sound of his mother's voice caused Andrew to look up from his bath water. Kurt was kneeling on the floor of the bathroom, leaning over the side of the large tub so he could supervise his son. A gray t-shirt, which Angle must have just put on before putting the baby in the top, was somewhat wet.

"Mama, mama, mama!" Andrew shrieked with a smile as he used his hands to splash the warm water.

"This temped bath seemed to calm him right down." Angle reported giving his wife a smile as she approached.

"I was able to get an appointment with the pediatrician. I have to get him over there now. Aurora's eating her breakfast now. You'll just have to keep her busy while I'm gone." Stephanie told her husband as she leaned down and lifted her baby out of the bathtub.

"That wouldn't be a problem. Since you've got him now, I'll head back down stairs and keep an eye on Aurora. Just holler if you need any help, okay honey?" Kurt told his wife while following her from the master bathroom to the nursery.

"Okay, make sure she eats a decent amount of her eggs. I don't know how well she slept last night at her father's so she'll probably gladly take her nap before noon." Steph replied as she allowed her baby to stand on the changing table so that she could dry him off with his towel.

Andrew was a bit wobbly on his feet, he held on to his mother's shirt to steady himself. He bent his knees a few times bringing himself almost into a crouch position before springing back upright bellowing gibberish. Steph had to hold him still with one of her hands while the other one dried him. The temped bath combined with the medicine had obviously made him feel better.

"Hey little girl, those eggs look yummy, are they?" Angle asked his step-daughter the minute he walked into the kitchen.

"Yeah, Mommy made them for me." Aurora replied smiling up at him. She held up her fork that had a piece of egg on it. It was going to be her next bite.

"Mommy's the best, huh?" Kurt replied with a smile before taking a seat next to the three year old.

"Yeah…" She said back. The sound of her feet hitting the bottom of the table could be heard as she swung her little legs while she ate.

"After you're done with breakfast, I'll put on any movie you want and we'll color. Does that sound good, little girl?" Angle asked.

"Yeah, I wanna watch the movie with the doggies with the spots."

Once Aurora had finished her breakfast, Kurt was quick to set her up in front of the television with the Disney classic cartoon movie, 101 Dalmatians playing on the plasma flat screen. She picked out her favorite coloring book that had each of the Disney princesses illustrated in black lines throughout the book for her to put color on and placed it on the coffee table.

"You color this page and I color this page." Aurora instructed her step-father as she pointed out two pages that were next to each other before she grabbed her red crayola crayon that she seemed to favor while coloring.

Since the three year old was so into her activity and watching her movie, she didn't even notice her mother and little brother leaving for the doctor's office. For this, both Kurt and Stephanie were grateful, because if she knew they were leaving, the inevitable question would then be if she could come too. The doctor's waiting and examining room really wasn't a place for a young child to be unless he or she was sick.

"You did an awesome job on that page, Aurora. Look how well you stayed in the lines." Angle pointed out, giving her praise for her advanced coloring technique. Aurora clapped her hands and smiled, obviously happy with her work and the fact that was being acknowledged for it.

"I help you color your page now." She told him as she leaned over and began filling color into the part of the page that Kurt had not gotten to yet.

The doorbell chiming caused both of them to look up from the book. Angle looked a little puzzled for he and Stephanie weren't expecting anyone. Steph had just left with the baby not too long ago and she had a key to their home, so it couldn't be her returning. He knew Vince and Linda were both at the headquarters in Stamford so it couldn't be them.

"I'm going to go see who's at the door. You finish up coloring the page and I'll be right back." Kurt told the three year old before giving her a quick kiss on top of her head before getting up to answer the door.

"Okay…" Aurora muttered not even looking up from her work.

Angle ventured to the front of his home so that he could answer the front door and see just who it was that was standing on his front porch. He turned the two locks on the door to the unlocked opposite before he opened the door and saw his wife's ex-husband standing there. When Kurt saw that it was Paul, he narrowed the opening of the door so that Levesque wouldn't get the idea that he was going to be invited inside.

"What do you want, Paul?" Angle asked blatantly. He wanted to get right to the point so as to find out why he was paying a visit when he just saw his daughter.

"I came over to talk to Stephanie." Levesque replied returning a cold stare to his foe. Paul had hoped that it would be Steph who would have answered the door so he wouldn't even had to deal with Angle.

"She's not home." Kurt quickly replied.

"Where is she?"

"Not that it is any of your business, but she took our infant son to the doctor's. You know, you didn't have to come to my house. If you had something to say to my wife, you could have called her." Angle stated in a calm voice that Paul knew masked the feeling of superiority that Kurt felt he had over him.

"I just wanted to drop off my support check for our daughter. I forgot to give it to her when she picked Aurora up today." Levesque replied pulling out a filled out check.

"You didn't have to give it to her in person. You've mailed it every other month." Kurt muttered before he began to slowly close the door in Paul's face.

Before the door could close, Levesque pushed it back open with his hand. The conversation was in no way over. Not when he still had to say his piece that he knew was going to enrage Angle.

"Well, I also wanted to apologize to Stephy. You see, when she came over to my place this morning, we ended up falling into old habits…" Paul explained as he shrugged his shoulders and gave Angle a smile.

"What are you talking about?" Kurt asked letting out a laugh while showing a look of confusion on his face.

"Angle, I told you, Steph is still in love with me. She only married you to upset me after I pulled shit during our marriage. And now that a year is up, she's finally going to come back to me. You know it's true." Levesque muttered as he leaned in close to the small opening that he forced by holding the door open.

"You're pathetic if you believe that, Paul. I actually feel sorry for you." Kurt scoffed. He couldn't believe that Paul was trying this hard to make him believe that Steph still had feelings for him.

"No Angle, I feel sorry for you…The last time I was here, when I came to visit my little girl and you were off to go visit your kids or so you thought you were, I was standing right in your kitchen passionately kissing your wife….Go ahead, ask her if it happened. We'll see if she owns up to it." Paul told him an intense whisper while he wore a smirk. He was enjoying spewing the words out to Angle with the hopes that it would damage his trust in his wife.

Kurt's blue eyes were now overflowing with hatred. Levesque could see that he was shaking with anger. He was fighting to control himself. Was Angle buying into the version of events that Paul wanted him to hear? Just like Paul, Kurt was infuriated by the thought of another man being intimate with Stephanie. And Levesque loved the fact that it was now Angle that was on the other side of it all.

"Get the hell off my property and stay the hell away from my wife…" Angle finally muttered in a voice that was completely serious and brimming with anger. He then slammed the front door shut before Paul could even react. Paul heard the deadbolt lock and he knew that the confrontation was indeed over.

It had gone perfectly. Levesque actually felt proud of himself. He had been able to conduct himself in the cold, calculating, and manipulative mindset that was needed. After all, his on-screen character, Triple H, wasn't called the Cerebral Assassin for nothing. Levesque was the smarter man between himself and Kurt Angle. He had found a new strategy to pick away at the superficial family that Stephanie was hiding behind. It was only a matter of time before everything would fall and she would be his again.


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty

Stephanie was still being in love with Paul? Levesque even suggesting this caused Angle to feel unhinged. Perhaps that was his plan. It couldn't be true. Steph was his wife and they were happily married for over a year now. At least that's how Kurt saw it. Didn't Steph? And what was Levesque talking about when he mentioned a kiss? Would Stephanie really allow that to happen? No, Paul was talking out of his ass.

Little Aurora decided to take her afternoon nap on the sofa next to him and Kurt decided to take the opportunity to watch the latest fight that his DVR had recorded. It was the only thing that would occupy his mind and keep it from dwelling on Levesque's visit.

The sound of Stephanie's footsteps from the laundry room into the kitchen caused Angle to look away from the match. He caught sight of his wife carrying their sleeping child as well as her purse and the diaper bag. Kurt sighed before hitting the pause button on his universal remote leaving the frame of Liddell's right arm fully extended in a superman punch to the face of Anderson Silva.

"Hey…" He muttered approaching Steph. His voice was quiet and subdued; he did not want to awaken his sleeping baby.

"Hey, the pediatrician prescribed him an antibiotic. I think the medicine is helping. He fell asleep on the way home and his fever is down." Stephanie explained in a whisper as she allowed her husband to take her purse and diaper bag off her hands and set them both down on the countertop.

"Well that's good." Kurt simply replied casting his eyes on his son who was peacefully in his slumber within his mother's arms.

"Where's Aurora?"

"She's asleep on the sofa, put herself down for a nap." Angle replied following his wife from the kitchen to the front of the house where they began to climb the grand staircase.

"Okay, well I need to put in a few hours at headquarters. Andy should be asleep for a while. I'm going to grab a quick shower." Steph told Kurt in a whisper as she gently placed her son in his crib.

"You're happy, right?"

Kurt blurted out his random question out of nowhere and it caused Steph to turn and look at him in surprise. He was looking directly at her without a smile which told Steph that he was indeed serious. Stephanie's eyebrows furrowed as she tilted her head slightly. Why on the heels of their terrific anniversary getaway, was he asking her if she was happy? Was something wrong?

"Wait, what are we talking about here?" Steph finally asked after a few seconds of silence.

"I mean, you're happy with our life together, right? Our marriage…" Angle asked again, rephrasing his question to make it more specific. He was beating around the bush, trying to allow his wife the opportunity to voice any problems she had in her marriage, or confessions she had to make.

"Yes, I'm happy…Aren't you?" Steph replied throwing a question of her own right back at him.

"Of course I am." Angle told her while we looked her in the eyes as she approached him. She looked confused by the unexpected direction their conversation had taken.

"What made you ask me all this? Are you okay?" Stephanie asked with a sense of worry in her voice. She brought her hands to her husband's freshly shaved face; her fingertips resting at his jaw line, making sure that he continued to look into her eyes.

Angle wasn't getting anywhere with his questions, if anything, he was making his wife uneasy. Perhaps she was afraid that he had feels of marital discord. It was obvious that he was just going to have to tell her what Levesque had told him.

"Levesque showed up while you were gone."

"Why? What did he want?" Steph asked narrowing her eyes. She found it strange that her ex-husband would show up at her house for any reason when she had just picked their daughter up at his house earlier in the day. If there was anything he needed from her, he could have called.

"He dropped off a support check for Aurora and he told me that there is still something between the two of you. He told me that he kissed you right in our kitchen." Angle told his wife, reporting exactly what Levesque had told him. This was her chance to share with him her side of the story.

"Kurt, I can't believe you would even think that I'd cheat on you with my ex-husband. He tried to kiss me while we were in the kitchen the last time he was in our house, when he came to see Aurora. I stopped him. That's it, it wasn't a big deal." Steph explained quickly, showing her husband that she had nothing to hide.

"Yeah but, if it wasn't a big deal, why didn't you tell me that he made a pass at you?" Angle asked turning his head to the side slightly. He didn't like the fact that he was just hearing about this situation well after the fact. If there was nothing to it, then why didn't she tell him up front about it?

Stephanie rolled her eyes and gestured for her husband to follow her out of the nursery so that they could talk further without risking waking up their child. She was getting a little annoyed with his series of questioning. As if she had ever given him any reason not to trust her. He was getting jealous over nothing. It reminded her of how Paul would get.

"I didn't tell you because it was insignificant to me. Besides, running to tell you what happened right after the fact would only make you angry for no reason."

"Fuck yeah I'd be angry about it! You're my wife! If you would have told me that day, I would have kicked his sissy ass on the spot! I wouldn't care if the kids were there to see it or not!" Kurt yelled with intensity causing Steph to grab hold of his arm.

"Hey, shh, there's no reason to get upset about it. Nothing happened and nothing will happen between me and Paul." Steph said in a quiet voice after she turned her husband to face her using her grip on his arm. She had then placed her hands on his face.

"The next time I see him, I'm taking him down. He must want more of what he got backstage at Night of Champions." Kurt said in a low voice as he took his wife into his arms so he could hold her close.

"Kurt, promise me you'll be civil with him. I'm trying really hard for Aurora to warm up to him. I don't want her to see the two of you fighting. Please, would you keep your composure around him for me?" Steph asked in a sweet voice before she allowed her pink bottom lip to protrude slightly.

"You may be asking for too much…" Kurt muttered removing his hands from his wife. He left Steph standing in the upstairs hallway as he began to descend the staircase.

Stephanie could strangle Paul. Why on earth would he go out of his way to cause her problems when he knew she had her hands full with work and a sick baby? Wasn't Paul finally taking the steps toward a new life by dating Torrie? If he now had his own romantic relationship, why couldn't he just leave her and Kurt alone? Perhaps he was the proverbial dog with two bones. It was okay for him to move on with someone else but she couldn't.

And now Steph had to worry about Kurt. He had been in such a good mood lately especially after their wedding anniversary and now, thanks to Paul, he was furious. She knew her husband wasn't joking around when he threatened to beat the hell out of Paul. She was just hoping it wouldn't have to come to that. Paul was probably just trying to get under Kurt's skin. As dangerous as her husband was, he was a generally easy going guy who wouldn't start a physical altercation if there wasn't one. Some snide remarks would not be enough for the two of them to come to blows.

Stephanie knew that she couldn't waste any more time dwelling on the events that had transpired. She had to get to the office and get her work done for the day. She felt a little bad leaving Kurt to take care of not only Aurora but their sick baby by himself, but she knew he could handle it. Besides, she wasn't going to be gone all day. A quick shower, blow dry, and change of clothes and Steph was out the door.

Angle resumed his position in front of the plasma television in the living room; though this time, he had a baby monitor sitting on the coffee table in front of him so that if Andrew woke up, he would hear him crying. The house was so big and it was Steph who had the knack for being able to know if the baby was crying even when she was asleep herself.

It was just after Kurt hit the button on his universal remote to resume the MMA match that his cell phone began to ring. With little Aurora asleep on the couch, he quickly reached for the phone and answered it without even bothering to wait for the caller i. show up.

"Hello?" He said, not taking his eyes off the action on the screen.

"Angle, how's it going, man?"

The voice made Angle smile. He knew exactly who he was talking to the moment the guy spoke. It was Brock Lesnar, his friendly rival. Since Brock's short lived time in WWE, he and Kurt stayed in touch since the both of them ate, slept, and breathed wrestling. While Lesnar openly admitted that he looked up to Angle, he also believed that he was now at the same level as him. Kurt was fine with that notion, because he too had a lot of respect for Lesnar.

"Hey, I'm doing pretty good. How have you been doing?" Kurt asked back running his left hand over his head, as if he was running his hand through hair that wasn't there.

"I've been training like crazy for an upcoming fight. I'm actually in New York for the rest of the week. The press conference for the fight is going to be in the city. I was wondering if you wanted to meet up for a drink." Lesnar offered.

"Nah, sorry, I'm watching the kids today. My youngest is not feeling well and Steph's putting time in at the office. So you're going to be in the area up until the weekend?" Angle asked.

"Yeah, it's just me here to handle some of the press stuff and then Rena is coming out with the baby. Maybe we can all get together."

"Yeah sure, you and Rena are welcome to come for dinner this weekend. Stephy and I didn't have any plans. I'll just have to talk with her and find out which day it would be best to have you guys over."

"Sounds like a plan. How are things going with you and Stephanie? You guys tied the knot a year ago, right?"

"Yeah, we just had our one year anniversary. She's a great wife and mother. I love her to death." Angle told his friend.

"But? What's the catch? No marriage is perfect. Is it her baggage? Rena has a daughter from her first marriage before she was even with Marc Mero. It can be a little weird getting a kid via marriage."

"No, I adore Steph's little girl, Aurora. I never had any problem with Steph having a daughter from her first marriage. What I can't stand her ex-husband, Levesque. The guy just won't leave us alone. Things are going great with Stephy and the guy insists on sticking his big nose into our busy. It's starting to cause problems between me and Steph." Kurt explained as he vented his frustrations.

"Damn man, I don't know how you keep it together. I would have already punched him out. He'd be out of the company if I were in your position." Lesnar replied.

"Trust me; I would love to lay him out, my wife doesn't want me to though. She's worried about her daughter and how it would all affect her."

"Ha, just don't let the kid see it happen. You tell her, 'So half of Daddy's face is caved in, it's an improvement.'" Brock said with a laugh. His comment caused Kurt to burst out laughing which he quickly stifled seeing that it had caused Aurora to roll over to her other side on the sofa.

"I wish it was that simple. But hey, I'm going to let you go. I've got Liddell and Silva's fight on my DVR. I'll text or call you to firm up which day of the weekend we can have you over. Greenwich isn't that far from New York."

Stephanie sat her office desk typing away as she tried to get all her office duties taken care of so that she could get back home to her sick baby. RAW's team of writers had already met earlier that morning without her. She was now looking over their notes that they sent her. It was obvious to her that they were really reaching for fresh ideas. They couldn't do anything right without her being there. Steph hit the send button after typing out the email that would be forwarded to all the writers before her eyes fell upon one of the pictures on her desk.

It was a family photo that was professionally taken not long after Andrew was born. They were sitting in the New England sand with the ocean behind them. Kurt was holding their little newborn baby in one arm while the other arm was around her. Aurora was in the picture as well, after all, she was part of the family too. She was sitting right on her mother's lap with a huge smile on her face that matched her mommy's. They looked so happy, a perfect blended family. All that was missing was Kurt's children, Kyra and Kody, and it would be just like the old movie, "Yours, Mine, and Ours".

The sound of her PDA ringing caused Stephanie to be jolted from her few seconds of daydreaming. She quickly answered her phone. With the baby being sick and Kurt home alone with both of the kids, she was afraid he was calling for her help.

"Hello?"

"So when this weekend can we get together to spend time with Aurora?"

Stephanie exhaled into her blackberry when she heard the sound of her ex-husband's voice on the line. After how upset Kurt was earlier, Paul was the last person she wanted to talk to. But since she had him on the phone, she might as well address the issue that had put a damper on her day.

"Did you show up at my house earlier today and tell my husband that there was still something between us?" Steph asked, she wanted to see if Paul would own up to his actions.

"So what if I did? I came over to give you Aurora's support check. I can't help it if Angle is insecure. I only spoke the truth about us." Paul replied.

"There was no reason for you to come over. You could have just mailed Aurora's check like you do every other month. I could have fried an egg on Kurt's head when I got home. Why do you insist on having discord between all of us? I'm trying to keep things civil for Aurora. Don't you want her to start warming up to the idea of spending equal amount of time with you as she does me? Why do you want to sabotage our progress toward that?" Steph asked back completely ignoring the fact that Levesque was claiming that there was still something between them.

"I want to spend time with both of you, not just Aurora. I want Angle completely out of the fucking picture. You and Aurora belong with me and you know that." Paul told her causing Steph to shake her head as she let out a small laugh. She couldn't believe he was back to this.

"Oh yeah, what does Torrie think about that? I hope you're being nice to her. She's a beautiful person and deserves to be loved. And I trust her around our daughter, that's more than I can say about that disgusting whore you were carrying on with during our marriage." Stephanie told him making reference to Michelle North.

"So am I going to see you and our daughter this weekend or what?" Paul asked impatiently as he disregarded Stephanie's mention of Torrie Wilson.

"Are you going to stop causing tension between you and Kurt? I don't need that in my life, Paul. I really don't."

"If you agree to bring Aurora with you to spend time with me this weekend, I will. Should we make the date for Saturday or Sunday?" He asked.

"Paul, that's blackmail and you know it…" Steph said letting out a chuckle. She had to admire his determination to get his way. She remembered him using the same tactics to get her to have dinner with him on the sly in 1999. It was when her father's iron clad rule of her not dating any wrestlers was still in full effect. Paul never let that stop him.

"Fine, I'm sure my mom wouldn't mind if we had the visit at her and Dad's house. I know they'll be home on Sunday, so that will work out. I have to go now. I have work to finish if I'm ever going to get out of the office. Goodbye, Paul."

"Bye, see you Sunday, Steph."


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-One

"See the little birdie out there? He's looking for some dinner." Kurt said in a whisper to his son as he held him in his muscular arms by the large living room window. Angle was shifting his weight back and forth from each foot in an attempt to keep his sick child soothed. He thought that pointing out the small bird would keep his baby's interest.

"Baa?" Andrew blurted out pointing one of his little fingers toward the window. Kurt had followed his wife's directions to a tee; giving his son a dose of medicine that he needed to keep the fever down.

"Open this pweaze." Aurora said to Kurt as she held up a pack of M&Ms she took out of the kitchen pantry.

"No sweetie, Mommy's on her way home with dinner. If you have a snack now, you won't want to eat. Go put the candy back." Angle explained smiling down at his step-daughter.

"But I want this." The three year old whined showing her stubbornness for sweets. She didn't comprehend what Kurt had told her about having to wait.

Before Angle was able to reply to her, Stephanie made her entrance through the garage door and walked from the laundry room to the kitchen. It was her mother's return that caused Aurora to drop the package of candy and run to her mommy.

"Hey sweetheart, what a nice greeting, do you want to help me by carrying a bag?" Stephanie asked with loving smile. She was looking down at her daughter who was hugging her legs. Steph allowed her daughter to take hold of the lightest bag of food so she could follow her with it into the kitchen.

The sound of Stephanie's voice caused Andrew's head to turn and look in her direction. His eyes widened and his mouth formed a wet smile; he knew his mother's voice.

"Maa!" Andy shrieked through his smile, leaning out toward Steph's direction.

"Yay, Mommy is home. Let's walk over to Mommy." Angle said to his son before he gently set the baby on his feet while still holding on to his little hands to make sure he was steady. With his daddy providing some support, Andy toddled quickly across the kitchen to his mother.

"Oh look at my big boy! Look at you walking with Daddy, come here!" Stephanie exclaimed as she knelt down with her arms out toward her approaching baby. When he reached her, she quickly lifted him up into her arms and planted a few kisses on his face.

"Mommy, candy in here?" Aurora asked as she peeked in the small bag Stephanie had given her to carry. Even with her mother's arrival, she had not forgotten about her desire for sweets.

"No honey, there's no candy in there. It's one of the bags of food I brought home for dinner. Are you hungry? Why don't you let Kurt sit you at the table and I'll bring you your food." Stephanie told her daughter before lovingly brushing her daughter's hair away from her little face with her free hand.

"Come here little princess, time to take your place on your throne. How about you fly there? Woosh!" Kurt said making the sound effect. His voice filled with playfulness as he lifted Aurora off the ground. He held her up in the air with both arms to simulate her flying as he ran with her across the kitchen. This caused Aurora to let out a belly laugh that her little half brother attempted to mimic from where he sat on his mother's left hip.

A hearty laugh came from Stephanie while she watched her husband interacting with her daughter. She always loved watching how great Kurt was with Aurora. It always amazed her how sweet and loving he could be to her when she was not his child. Even before Steph became romantically involved with Angle, he was always friendly to Aurora. Stephanie felt so lucky to have a husband who not only loved her but also her child from her first marriage. Despite Angle's strong dislike for Aurora's father, he did not allow that to influence the way he treated her.

"I'm so relieved that he is feeling better. That medicine really did the trick." Steph commented as she spoon fed Andrew baby food from where he sat in his high chair next to her.

The family was seated at the table eating their take-out food. Stephanie was sitting in between her two children while Kurt was on the other side of the high chair, at the head of the table. Angle gave his wife a smile before leaning back in his chair and taking a sip of his diet coke.

"Where's my toy?" Aurora asked looking up from her food and to her mother and then stepfather.

"What toy, sweetie?" Steph asked turning her attention away from feeding her youngest.

"It's only McDonalds that comes with toys, little girl." Kurt told the three year old. Unlike his wife, he knew what the youngster was asking about. Vince had taken Aurora to McDonalds on occasion and as a result, many cheaply made happy meal toys were scattered around the house which Steph hated.

"We don't eat McDonalds. It's not good for you and I told your Grandpa not to take you there anymore. Not that he listens…" Steph muttered with an eye roll before she went back to spooning baby food into Andy's mouth.

"I like Donalds…I like Donald duck too, and Mickey Mouse, and Pluto." Aurora commented aloud in between bites of food. She wasn't speaking to anyone in particular but simply talking to herself.

"Guess who I got a call from today." Kurt said aloud to his wife.

Steph's eyes shifted to focus on her husband. Her thoughts suddenly went to the phone call she received at work. She knew better than to bring up the call from Levesque to her husband at the dinner table. Paul had already come up in conversation earlier in the day and nothing good came of it. She would wait to tell him about her plans for Sunday.

"Who?" Steph asked back showing her curiosity as to who called her husband that was worth mentioning at dinner.

"Brock Lesnar." Kurt replied with a smile as he lean forward to take a bite of his food.

Stephanie gave her husband a blank look before shrugging her shoulders. She hoped he wasn't expecting her to be happy or even mildly interested about Lesnar's phone call. This was a guy who had made derogatory comments about her and Paul while they were still married. Brock had commented to the effect that if it wasn't Paul who was having sex with her, it would be another WWE wrestler; all this of course after he ditched the McMahons' company for a long shot career in the NFL. Now Brock Lesnar was a fighter in the UFC which ultimately made him a bad influence for her husband, Kurt. That was all Kurt needed; someone feeding into his MMA aspirations.

"What did he want?" Steph asked nonchalantly while she leaned over the high chair to wipe baby food from Andrew's face with a napkin.

"He's got a fight in New York and wanted to hang out today. Rena and the baby are going to be with him in New York this weekend. I told him that we would have them over for dinner. What day did you want to have them over?"

"So you just invited them without talking to me first?" Stephanie asked with a hint of attitude as she threw the napkin on the table.

"I extended the invitation but I told him that I needed to check with you about the specific day. I didn't think it would be a big deal. I thought you liked Rena."

"I do like Rena. I'm not a big fan of Brock though. You know the comments he made about me a few years ago."

"That was when you were with Paul. You're now my wife. Brock respects me and so he respects you now. Besides, you know I would never let him disrespect you. I promise you, he won't be a problem. I think his son, Turk, is Andrew's age. I'm sure you and Rena will have a lot in common to talk about." Angle told his wife. He was trying to smooth things over so that Steph would see that having the Lesnars over for dinner would be a pleasant experience.

"Well that shows how shallow he is. What does who I am married to have to do with how he behaves toward me?"

"Babe, he's not the only one that has no respect for Levesque. Some of the boys called him the Kevin Federline of WWE when he was with you. If it wasn't for you, he wouldn't have stayed in the main event. I'm not like that. I am a real wrestling champion. I'm a shooter. None of my wrestling accolades have to do with us being together. We are both two unstoppable forces in this business in our own right." Kurt explained.

"Who I choose to be with has nothing to do with wrestling ability." Steph pointed out making her point clear as she looked directly at her husband.

"I know honey, but that's how people perceive it. Now which day do you want them over here?" Angle asked getting up from where he sat.

"Saturday would be better. I have something planned for Sunday." Stephanie replied after a brief pause and an exhale.

"What are you doing on Sunday?" Angle asked narrowing his eyes. This was the first he had heard that his wife had something going on this weekend. He was curious as to what it was.

"We'll talk about it later. It's not that important, it's just that this isn't the time or place to discuss it."

Kurt's eyebrows went up and then he flashed a smirk. To him, it sounded like Stephanie had some ideas of a sexual nature planned for Sunday that she couldn't discuss in front of Aurora. Angle wondered if what she had planned could even come close to topping their anniversary night in New York they just had.

"Will you finish up feeding the baby then clean up from dinner? It's getting late and I need to give Aurora a bath and get her ready for bed."

"Yeah sure, babe, is Andrew going to need another dose of medicine before bedtime?" Angle asked before Steph left the room with Aurora.

"No, you gave him the dose while I was at work, right? He's fine for the night."

After a quick bath, Stephanie helped Aurora into her pretty pink pajamas and tucked her into her bed with her stuffed puppy dog and teddy bear by her side. Steph was sitting on the edge of the bed so that she could give her daughter all of the goodnight hugs and kisses she wanted before bedtime.

"Daddy hug me goodnight-night too?" Aurora asked turning her head toward the doorway to her room.

"Kurt is cleaning up from dinner and then putting your baby brother to bed. But speaking of your real daddy, Aurora, would you like to visit with him on Sunday? I know that he loves and misses you very much.

"Daddy come upstairs and visit with brother?" Aurora asked tilting her head to the side as she gave her mother a puzzled look.

"I'm trying to figure out a way of explaining this to you so that you understand…" Steph said aloud while she racked her brain for a way of explaining to her daughter about who her real father was.

"Aurora, your little brother, Andrew, was a present to Mommy from Kurt. He is Andrew's Daddy. You were a present to me from Paul. Paul is your daddy. Do you understand what I'm saying?" Steph asked looking back at her daughter waiting and hoping that her young mind could grasp the analogy she had given her.

"Yeah…I want a present, Mommy. Can I have a present?" The three year old asked; her voice full of excitement as she sat up in bed.

Stephanie exhaled and gave her daughter a loving smile. It wasn't her little girl's fault if she could not comprehend the complexity of her living arrangements. Divorce definitely complicated things. At least Aurora was lucky enough to have more than one man who wanted to be a father figure in her life.

"Here's your present, one huge hug and a whole bunch of kisses!" Stephanie said back with enthusiasm and she leaned over and showered her child with affection. "Good night sweetheart, I love you."

"Night, night Mommy." Aurora answered back before rolling over on her side and closing her eyes before Steph turned the light off in her room and exited.

With Aurora tucked in her bed for the night and Kurt taking care of the baby, Stephanie decided that she needed a little quiet time for herself with a nice hot bath. The master bathroom provided her with the perfect relaxing atmosphere. She dimmed the lights and lit a few scented candles that were sitting around the large Jacuzzi tub. She swept her hair up in a loose up do to keep her hair from falling into the water as she soaked in the hot water.

"Hey babe, having some quiet time?" Angle asked in a quiet voice as he entered their master bathroom just after putting Andrew down for the night.

"Yes, it feels so nice to relax. I feel like I've been on the go nonstop today." Steph muttered with her eyes closed.

Kurt crept over to the edge of the bath tub. Without saying anything, he leaned over and kissed his wife's lips already parted lips. She let out a sigh and enjoyed the passionate kiss that lasted for a brief moment before he spoke again in a whisper.

"Do you want me to get in? Or do you want to save that for Sunday?" Angle asked. He was referencing what he believed to be the day of the weekend Stephanie had set aside just for them to fool around.

"I don't feel like to tonight, honey. I just want to soak in the tub and then go to bed."

Angle narrowed his eyes. He looked surprised by his wife's decision to reject his invitation of intimacy. That wasn't her normal response. Since they had become romantically involved over a year ago, she had always had a desire for regular intimacy. Was there something wrong? Did it have anything to do with their argument over Levesque earlier in the day or what he said about him at the dinner table?

"Are you still upset with me about what I said about Paul or our argument about him earlier today?" He asked wanting an honest answer from his spouse. The question caused Stephanie to open her eyes and sit up in the tub.

"No, I'm just so tired. Between Andrew being sick and having to take him to the doctors and then dealing with things at the office, I could fall asleep right now. Just thinking about how we'll have to pack up and take the kids to RAW on Monday." Steph said listing off all the stressors that she was trying to let go by relaxing in the hot bath.

"Well I know I brought up the idea of us getting help for the kids before. A nanny could really help us out. You don't have to do everything yourself. I mean if it's stressing you out." Kurt pointed out as he began to undress, putting his clothing in the nearby hamper.

"I don't want some stranger taking care of my children. I'm their mother, it's my job to put them first. I have to talk to Dad, because I'm seriously thinking about staying home with the kids instead of being at every RAW."

"You really want to stay home and just work at the office? I have a hard time believing that you'll be able to stay at home. You love traveling with the show." Angle replied, reminding his wife of her tendency to become 'stir-crazy' as she had once told him about staying in one place too long.

"There has to be a happy medium. I'll talk with Dad. I'm sure we can figure out something. My children come first, bottom line." Steph answered back leaning back again to resume relaxing position.

"Do whatever you want, baby. I just want you to be happy, you and the kids…" Kurt muttered before he began brushing his teeth.

The next morning brought Andrew's fever back with a vengeance. Steph knew that his fever was returning because he needed a dose of the antibiotic. Before she could give him the medicine, he needed a diaper change.

"What's wrong with Daddy's little buddy?" Kurt asked walking into the nursery with a towel wrapped around his waist. He had just gotten out of the shower and could hear his son crying hard from the master bedroom.

"His fever came back. He needs a dose of medicine." Stephanie explained as she gave her son a quick gentle rub on his bare tummy in an attempt to sooth him as she finished up putting a new diaper on him.

"Can I do something to help?" Angle asked showing that he was a bit uneasy with his child crying with such intensity. He brought his hand to Andy's head and stroked his soft hair as the baby brought his little hands to his face and rubbed it.

"Why don't you go get dressed? I've got the kids. Just hurry up and come downstairs, I have to get a shower too. I want the house to be spotless when the Lesnars show up."

Angle did as his wife told him while Stephanie took her fussy baby downstairs and into the kitchen. Aurora was busy playing with her stuffed animals while watching Saturday morning cartoons. She didn't even notice that her mother was now downstairs.

A dose of medicine followed by his pacifier being popped into his mouth, caused Andrew's crying to cease. Steph went to put the baby down on the floor but he let out a whine the moment his feet touched the ground. She lifted her son back up into her arms so that he would stay soothed. With her free hand, Stephanie grabbed hold of the cordless phone and quickly dialed numbers into the keypad before she brought it to her ear.

"Hey Steph, I'm glad you didn't forget to call me. Am I going to see you and Aurora today?" Paul asked the moment he answered the phone. It was obvious that he had seen on the caller id that it was his ex-wife who was calling him. He was genuinely overjoyed to hear from her first thing in the morning.

"Hi Paul, well actually it's going to have to be Sunday at my parents' house. Kurt and I are entertaining guests at the house today."

"Who are you having over? I mean, who could possibly be more important than me? What, is one of Angle's twenty brothers coming over? They all look like." Paul replied with a chuckle.

"No, Brock and Rena Lesnar are in town and Kurt and I invited them to dinner." Steph heard herself tell him before she even thought about whether or not she wanted to give him all the details of her day. Why was it any of his business to know who her and Kurt were having over?

"Oh, one of Angle's butt buddies, how nice."

"I'm going to hang up if this is all this conversation is going to be." Stephanie threatened, rolling her eyes in response to how childish her ex-husband was being.

"I'm just kidding around. So does Angle know that we're spending the day together with Aurora tomorrow? I don't want him horning in on our time. The idea is for it to be just you and me with our daughter."

"I haven't had a chance to talk to him about it yet. I'm sure he will be fine with it though since it's for Aurora." Steph explained.

"Why haven't you told him? Maybe you know that tomorrow's visit is just important for us as it is for Aurora." Levesque pointed out.

"Stephy, do you know where my white collared shirt is? Could it be in the laundry room?" Angle called out as she walked into the kitchen in a pair of jeans without a shirt. It was then he saw that his wife was on the phone. He fell silent, allowing her to finish speaking to whoever was on the phone. He had no clue that it was Paul.

"Well I have to go, I'll tell Aurora that you send your love. Okay, goodbye." Steph quickly said to end the phone call.

"Who was that, babe?" Kurt asked narrowing his eyes slightly to show his curiosity. He found it a little strange that his wife ended the phone call the moment he entered the room.

"Oh, it was just Paul…" Steph replied nonchalantly before she set the phone down in its charger.

"What did he want?" Angle asked following up with another question not even a second after his wife revealed to him that it was her ex-husband that was on the phone.

Stephanie's eyes quickly shifted to the left for a brief second as she thought about what would be the best response to his question. Was this the best time to tell him about tomorrow's visitation? Telling him about it now would only lead to more questioning on his part. She had so much to do before the Lesnars arrival. She really didn't have time to deal with more drama. She would tell her husband after their day of entertaining their guests was over.

"Nothing important, he was asking about the next time he could see Aurora. Your shirt is hanging in the hallway closet. I had it dry cleaned and just stuck it there when it was dropped off." Stephanie replied, her eyes focused back on her husband. She was hoping her disclosure of the location of his dress shirt would make him lose interest in the phone call.

"Okay, thanks babe…" He muttered staring right back into his wife's eyes.

He looked like he was deep in thought; processing what Steph had just told him. Angle's blue eyes then shifted over to the cordless phone that Steph had returned to its cradle. He held his breath for a moment, as if he was about to say something, but he didn't. Instead, he left the kitchen to grab his shirt from the hall closet.


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-Two

"I think they're here." Kurt reported as he walked into the spacious living room. He had noticed that a luxury rental car had pulled into their well lit driveway while he was tending to the kids.

"Okay, I'm just about done." Steph replied not taking her eyes off of what she was doing.

Stephanie had been giving him things to put away while she was making a clean sweep of their downstairs. It was normal for her to do this every time they were expecting company. The challenge for her was to keep her children occupied so that she could straighten up without being interrupted constantly. She accomplished this by sitting Aurora at the kitchen table with her favorite coloring book while placing Andrew in the nearby playpen with a few toys.

Kurt had decided to not even question the circumstances surrounding the phone call between his wife and her ex-husband. Stephanie was already doing him the favor of entertaining Lesnar who she really wasn't fond of. Of course, this did not mean that he was going to forget about the call. In the past few days, his awareness of Levesque's interest in his wife had been heightened. It was something to keep an eye on, but not something that he considered to be a threat to his marriage.

"You bought the steaks, right?" Stephanie asked. She was quickly removing Aurora's stuffed animals from the sofa that was adjacent from the plasma television.

"Yeah, I went and got them when you told me to earlier. They're in the frig. Babe, the house doesn't have to be perfect. Brock and Rena aren't going to care." Angle told his wife as he watched her line up the stuffed toys in Aurora and Andrew's little play corner of the room.

"I just want to make sure they have a choice of where they want to sit. I know the house doesn't have to be immaculate." She replied before taking a moment to scan the room to make sure everything was in order.

"Do I look all right?" Stephanie then asked her husband. She was now turned toward him. She ran her hands over her outfit in order to take care of any wrinkles or lint that might have accumulated there during her cleaning spree. Her eyes were focused on Angle, awaiting his response.

"Yes, you look wonderful tonight." Kurt replied with a chuckle as he advanced further into the room to meet his wife. He couldn't resist Eric Clapton's song lyric when he was replying.

"Kurt, I'm being serious…" Steph said in a somewhat pouty voice after giving her husband a giggle. She brought her hands to the collar of his dress shirt and fixed it.

"You look gorgeous, Stephy." Angle told her while gazed into her brilliant blue eyes. He placed his hands on her forearms that had been resting on his chest while she was fixing his collar. Gently, he moved her arms so that they were now around his neck.

Steph gave him a smile and tilting her head slightly before her husband's lips met hers. Her elbows bent fully; she hugged him tighter as their kiss intensified. Kurt's arm muscles flexed as he almost lifted his wife off the ground. The sound of their doorbell chiming caused them to break the kiss.

The couple walked into the kitchen en route to the front door of their home. The sight of both of his parents caused baby Andrew to whine with his arms stretched out toward them. He had obviously had enough of his playpen and wanted to be with them.

"Do you want to come see who's at the door?" Stephanie asked her son in a sweet voice before lifting him into her arms.

"Hey Aurora, my friend, Brock, and his wife are here to visit. Do you want to come with us to welcome them to our house?" Kurt asked his stepdaughter. He wanted to make sure that he was giving her the opportunity to greet the guests as part of the family.

The three year old shook her head without saying a word. She was shy to the idea of greeting strangers even with her mother there. Aurora was slow to warm up to new faces but once she did, she was a little chatter box.

"Hey, glad you guys could make it." Angle said the moment he opened his front door to allow his guests access to his home.

"We got a little turned around trying to find the place. All of these Connecticut country back roads look the same, especially in the dark." Brock said as he and Kurt exchanged a tough hand shake and then a quick hug.

"This is such a beautiful home." Rena commented to Stephanie. She was standing next to her husband holding her little son, Turk, in her arms.

"Oh thank you, I see your little one is still awake too. Look Andrew, you have a new friend." Steph said bringing her son closer to the other baby so that they could interact.

Both Andy and Turk's eyes widened as they became intently interested in looking at each other. Like all other babies, they both loved seeing another baby's face. Andrew's wet mouth formed a smile before a few lines of gibberish escaped from it. This caused Turk Lesnar to react the same exact way. Both mothers gushed at their sons while Angle and Lesnar continued their chat without even noticing.

Waiting to get dinner started, Stephanie sent Kurt onto the back deck to grill the steaks while she handled the rest of the meal. Rena was nice enough to help out Steph in the kitchen; her husband joined Kurt at the grill. Aurora had appointed herself in charge of monitoring her little brother and the other baby. The mothers had placed the children in the play corner of the living room. Every time either baby would try and crawl or toddle away, the three year old would try and drag them back over to where she thought they belonged. This of course, caused them to whine and fuss. Aurora would then animate a toy for them which would in turn pacify them.

"You are going to see me strangle your husband if I find out he's encouraging Kurt to fight." Steph said to Rena. They were both standing at the kitchen counter preparing food. Even though she was cooking, Stephanie was keeping her eye on her husband and Lesnar from the kitchen window. The two men were standing side by side talking over the hot grill.

"It wouldn't surprise me if he is. Mixed martial arts are what Brock lives for. It's always about the next fight with him. He never gives himself any downtime." Rena replied before she too gazed out the window.

"Kurt's the same way with wrestling. He's constantly pushing himself to the limit. With all of his past injuries, my heart is constantly in my throat when I watch him wrestle. I've asked him so many times to work lighter but he's so damn stubborn."

"I know what you mean, believe me. Brock sees himself as invincible. It has only gotten worse since he won the heavyweight title. He's an amazing fighter but no one is immune to injury or God forbid, death. He's only human…despite what he believes." Mrs. Lesnar commented.

"Kurt is the same way. At least Brock is in his early thirties. Kurt is now forty. I don't know how much more his body can take. What good is being known as the best wrestler in the business if you are so broken down that you can't play with and enjoy your children?" Steph replied back in a serious tone of voice.

As frustrated as Mrs. Angle was by her husband's stubbornness to excel in the business, she was somewhat relieved to be talking to another wife who had the same issues in common. Rena Lesnar had to cope with the same worry each time her husband stepped into the cage to fight. She too had an infant son with her husband and had to fret about some of the worst possible outcomes of each and every fight.

"If I were you, I wouldn't let Levesque anywhere near my wife." Brock told Kurt before taking a sip from his beer bottle.

"It's not that simple. They have a daughter together. Trust me; he uses Aurora like a pawn to play on Steph's emotions." Angle replied turning the steaks one by one with the metal tongs in his right hand while he held his beer bottle in his left.

"Of course he wants to get back with Stephanie. The guy is nothing without her. The fact that he calls himself an athlete and a wrestler is a complete joke and an insult to us. Still, the guy is intelligent and manipulative, you can't underestimate him."

Kurt simply nodded as he turned his head and caught sight of his wife through the kitchen window. Steph was smiling and laughing while talking to Rena. He thought back to how he felt earlier in the day when he saw Steph talking to her ex-husband. As much as Angle didn't want to admit it, he felt the smallest amount of jealousy creeping in. But why would he need to feel jealous? Steph was now married to him. And according to her, she was very happy. It wasn't like Levesque could ever measure up to him, so why was he feeling this way about the call? Perhaps it was just the fact that Kurt knew that Paul wanted to take Steph from him. Angle couldn't stand the thought of losing her.

"I know he's gunning for her…" Angle finally said aloud before taking a gulp of beer.

"He's not going to take your wife, man. Even if the guy has some brains, he's still a pussy. Just treat this like he's a potential wrestling opponent that you're going up against. What do you do? You study him and find his weakness. Once you know, you exploit it. Shoot for the single leg, and put him on the mat for the count before he even knows what hit him, get it?" Lesnar said to his friend with a smile as he reached into his back pocket after placing his empty beer bottle on the deck railing.

"Yeah, I get it. I'm going to talk to Vince, he knows more about Levesque then I do." Kurt replied while tending to the steaks.

"You want a dip?" Brock offered holding his round can of chew out. He had already put a chunk in his own mouth before offering some to his buddy.

"No thanks man, I quit that stuff."

"Since when? Why?" Lesnar asked with a chuckle as he closed the can and put it back into his back pocket of his pants.

"Steph didn't like it. I quit for her."

"You know, some people might call that being pussy whipped. She must be great in the sack."

"Oh yeah, she's pretty amazing. It's hard to find a woman who can match my intensity."

"You sure got her pregnant quick enough. You haven't been married that long and you already have a one year old." Brock laughed before he spit tobacco juice into his empty beer bottle.

"Actually I impregnated her before we were married. Well…technically, she was still married to Levesque when it happened." Angle admitted with a smirk.

"No shit, right under his enormous nose you knocked her up? Angle, you sly dog..." Lesnar laughed folding his arms after he gave his friend a playful punch in the arm.

"No, their marriage was already over, and so was mine. Steph had a hard time bringing the marriage to a close because she was worried about Aurora but when she found out she was pregnant with our baby son, it brought us back together."

"I always knew you wanted to hit that. You spent more time hanging out with her backstage then you did with me when we were on SmackDown together."

"Ah, what's the matter, Lesnar? Were you jealous?" Angle joked causing Brock to burst out laughing.

When dinner was ready, both couples sat in the dining room with their children. Aurora insisted that she sit next to her mommy and little brother who Stephanie had sitting on her lap so she could feed him with ease. On the other side of the table, Rena was doing the same thing with Turk. The sound of both babies babbling in between spoonfuls of Gerber echoed in the room due to the vaulted ceiling.

"Sweetie, don't kick the table." Steph told her three year old after the sound of her little feet could be heard hitting the underside of her expensive table. Being a very active child, Aurora sometimes would fidget in her boaster seat.

"Steph, she is so cute. She looks just like you. It's unbelievable." Rena Lesnar reported to Steph from across the table. She had taken her attention away from feeding her son for a moment to watch Stephanie's daughter.

"Yeah she does. Levesque must have no fucking genes what so ever. I guess God knows what he's doing, huh?" Brock remarked with a laugh right after his wife's observation and before Stephanie could reply.

Stephanie's eyes narrowed as she shot a look of distain over at her guest. Lesnar continued to laugh as he looked over at Kurt who was also snickering quietly after almost aspirating on his beer that he had been drinking when the joke was made. The fact that her husband was laughing at his friend's inappropriate comment caused her to change the focus of her angry gaze at him. Why was every little snide remark toward her ex-husband the new form of entertainment not just among other wrestlers but also her own husband. Didn't Kurt care that Aurora, Paul's little daughter, was sitting right there while his buddy was saying disparaging things about her father?

"Hey man, watch your mouth, we've got kids here." Angle finally said with a smile after a few awkward moments of silence that he was using to keep himself from laughing aloud. He turned to look at Stephanie who he could sense was staring at him.

The sight of his wife shooting him a look that was anything but warm and loving caused Kurt's smile to quickly fade. Without words, he shrugged his shoulders slightly as a way of pleading innocence as he acted like he didn't know why she looked upset with him.

"You can't be surprised by the fact that he had a daughter though. I mean from what I remember from biology class, you actually need a Y chromosome to give. And by the looks of him, I doubt he even has one. Roids can only do so much, you know." Lesnar chuckled before shoving a piece of steak in his mouth with a fork.

Brock's newest comment in an attempt at humor caused Angle to bring his hand up to his face. He used his large hand to cup his mouth, hiding a smile as well as keeping and signs of laughter hidden from everyone at the table. Stephanie had no problem seeing through his pathetic attempt to stifle his enjoyment of the rude comment. She looked right into his eyes before slowly shaking her head in disapproval.

"Brock, you know, it's not funny unless everyone is laughing. Don't be obnoxious, we are guests." Rena said to her husband after giving his large muscular arm a quick smack with her free hand.

"Steph, I just love your dining room set. Did you buy it here locally?" Mrs. Lesnar asked looking across the table. She was trying to change the topic of conversation and relieve the younger woman from feeling uncomfortable.

"Thank you, ugh, no, I ordered it from a catalog. It's a hand painted Madison Park set." Stephanie replied before giving Rena a quick polite smile. She brought her attention back to feeding herself and her son. Steph was happy that Rena had addressed her husband's behavior and had taken to focus off of her ex-husband.

"Stephy's got great taste. She decorated the whole house on her own." Kurt announced gazing lovingly over at his wife. He leaned over and put his arm around the back of her chair so that his hand could gently caress her back.

"So Rena, are you working now?" Steph asked almost cutting her husband off. She leaned forward in her chair, moving away from Kurt's touch. Andrew being closer to the table compelled him to reach out for his mother's fork and knife which she quickly had to move from his reach. This caused Andy to stiffen his body as he threw his head back let out a loud whine.

"No I'm not. I was doing some modeling before I got pregnant with Turk but now I just stay home and take care of my two boys." The former Mrs. Mero explained giving her baby son a little kiss on the cheek.

"Do you want me to take him so you can finish eating?" Angle offered after noticing that their child was being difficult and his wife was obviously irritated.

"No, I don't want you to take him! I don't want you to do anything!" Steph snapped back at her husband. Her voice was full of anger and frustration as her baby son continued to fuss. Kurt's eyes widened, he looked puzzled by his wife's irascible demeanor in response to him offering to help.

"Damn Angle, you can't do anything right. I think you can forget about getting any nookie tonight." Brock said with a chuckle. He was watching Angle's reaction to Stephanie's bitchy attitude. The guy looked confused and somewhat uncomfortable. He didn't even look like he heard Brock's comment.

"You better stop adding your two cents or you won't be getting any tonight either." Replied Rena who had turned her attention to her husband; Lesnar's continuation of inappropriate comments was really starting to aggravate her.

"He knows I'm just talking shit. But to be serious now, Angle, Rena and I would like you and Stephanie to be our guests tomorrow at the PPV. We've got two seats reserved right with Rena u close to the action."

Lesnar's offer immediately caused Kurt to look away from his wife. He looked and Brock and smiled, nodding his head in approval. In his eyes, the only thing better than watching MMA on his large plasma television was actually going to the events.

"I actually have plans for tomorrow. It's a commitment that I just can't break." Stephanie said aloud before her husband could even formally accept the Lesnars' offer. Her comment caused Kurt's state of perplexity to return. What exactly did his wife have planned for tomorrow? And more importantly, why didn't he know about it if it was so important to her?

Angle didn't immediately follow up on his curiosity. The last thing he wanted to do was look foolish in front of their company by admitting to not knowing what his own wife was going to be doing in place of joining him at the UFC event. It was a topic that was meant to be discussed in private. It was once the company left and both children were put to bed, that Kurt decided to enquire.

Stephanie was just finishing up cleaning the kitchen by loading up all the dinner plates into the dishwasher. Steph had not spoken to Angle directly since she had snapped out on him in the dining room during dinner. He had taken the initiative to be the one to tuck both children in for the night so that Steph didn't have to do so along with her kitchen duties.

"Did I do something to piss you off?" Angle asked bluntly as he walked into the kitchen.

"You say you love Aurora yet you see no problem in your pal, Brock, make cruel and hurtful comments about her father right in front of her. You were even laughing. What message does that send to Aurora?" Steph replied stopping what she was doing for a moment so she could turn and look over at her husband.

"It wasn't a big deal. Brock made a couple of off colored jokes about Levesque. Aurora was completely fine. She's only three years old. And she knows I love her like she was mine own daughter. I dare say, she is surer of my love for her than she is of her father's love."

Her husband's words caused Stephanie to turn back around to face her kitchen counter. She paused for a moment before resuming her activity, allowing his words to resonate in her mind. Kurt was speaking directly to the reason she made plans with Paul tomorrow.

"What's going on tomorrow that you can't go with me to New York for the UFC event?" Kurt asked in an attempt to switch topics and get off the subject of Levesque. Little did he know, Paul wasn't going to leave the conversation that easily.

"I'm going with Aurora over to my parents' house. Paul is going to visit with us." Steph replied nonchalantly and as though it was a matter of fact.

"Wait, what? You and Aurora are going to be spending the day with Paul tomorrow? Aurora is one thing, but why do you need to spend time with him, Stephanie?" Kurt asked inquisitively, putting his hands on his hips. He walked forward and further into the kitchen to be closer to his wife.

"How many times do I have to explain this to you? I am going to be there so that Aurora is comfortable during her visit with her father. It's not as big of a deal is you are trying to make it." Steph explained showing signs of becoming exasperated with her husband.

"Oh, I guess him putting the moves on you here in the kitchen while he was 'visiting' with the two of you is not a big deal then." Angle quickly replied folding his arms and leaning up against the counter top. He was throwing his wife's words back at her while sighting the incident that Levesque himself loved telling him about.

"That's not going to happen again. Paul's dating Torrie Wilson. It looks like he's finally moving on with his life and I think it's important that Aurora is a part of it."

"You don't need to be there if your mother is going to be. Aurora is close to your mom so if Paul's visiting while Linda supervises, everything will go smoothly. You are my wife. You should be at my side. I want you to go with me to the UFC event." Angle told her moving in to take her into his arms.

"I'm not going to see Brock Lesnar fight tomorrow! I could barely stand being in the same room as him during dinner! The way he was just taking cheap shot after cheap shot at Paul was unacceptable, especially since he was a guest in our home!" Steph hollered while backing away from Kurt's advances. After everything she had to deal with that evening, being intimate and loving with him was the very last thing on her mind.

"Why do you care what he says about Levesque? He's a worthless piece of shit! Are you forgetting what he put you and Aurora through? You don't owe him anything! I really hate for it to come down to this but you need to choose what's more important, spending time with me or him!" Angle hollered back. He was beginning to get riled up thinking about the possibility of Steph choosing Paul over him.

"Oh don't even go there! This isn't about us not spending time together, this is about you having a hard on to run to New York to hang out with Lesnar! He was a complete asshole and disrespected me and you didn't even do anything!" Steph screamed back throwing a dish towel at Kurt.

"He never said anything about you! What are you talking about?" Angle yelled as he threw the dish towel with force onto the counter. His chest was heaving, his anger building as their fighting continued.

"The shit he said about Paul was directed toward me and Aurora! You knew I was uncomfortable and you didn't say a word! Well you know what, Kurt! You and Brock can go fuck yourselves because you aren't getting anything from me tonight! Don't even try and get in our bed with me tonight!" Steph hollered began to storm out of the kitchen.

"Steph, wait, shit, I don't want this to drive a wedge between us. I won't go to the event tomorrow if you don't want me to. I'll go with you and the kids to your parents' house. I'll watch Andrew while Aurora visits with him." Kurt said quickly in an attempt to keep his wife from leaving the kitchen still mad at him.

Stephanie stopped right at the entrance to the hallway and turned around to face her husband. She took a few deep breaths before opening her mouth to speak again. Angle thought that her taking a moment before replying was a good sign that she was going to agree with him to resolve their issues.

"I don't want you there…It will only cause problems…Go to the event…" Stephanie said in a raspy voice, wiping away a single tear that had formed in her eye. Then slowly, she turned her back on her husband and left him standing alone in the kitchen.


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-Three

She didn't want him there… That was all that Kurt could think about during his lonely night in one of his and his wife's guest rooms. He had offered to be with her and the kids instead of going to the UFC event, yet she refused. Steph was determined to take Aurora and Andrew over to her parents' house alone to visit with Paul. It almost felt like Levesque had gotten the better out of him. It was like he was winning Stephanie's attention. Was her love and affection going to be next?

Angle tossed and turned causing the bed sheets to twist and tangle around his muscular frame. He exhaled sharply before bringing his hands to his face. He was torturing himself with possible scenarios of what would happen when Paul was given the opportunity to be alone with Steph without him there. There would be no uninterrupted sleep until these thoughts ceased from bombarding his mind. There was no escaping it. Overwhelmed with frustration, Kurt threw one of his pillows across the spacious room, and then ripping back the covers. Angle was done wrestling with his thoughts in the dark and silent bedroom. He needed to occupy his mind with something else.

Kurt leaned over and grabbed the blue sweatpants he had left on the floor next to the bed. He then put them on over his briefs as he got to his feet. Doing his best to be quiet, Angle crept out of the guest room and down the hall. Noise coming from the nearby nursery caught his attention, causing him to quietly enter.

"Hey little buddy, you can't sleep either?" Kurt whispered with a smile the moment he saw his son sitting up in the crib babbling and cooing to himself.

"Dada dada!" Andrew exclaimed with a smile after he got this his feet inside of the crib. He began banging his little hands on the smooth rail of his pickled pine crib.

"Shh, come here you, come to Daddy." Angle said in a whisper. He reached out and gently lifted his son up and out of the crib and into his arms.

Holding his child, Kurt quickly felt that the baby had a soiled diaper. Perhaps it was a dirty diaper that was keeping little Andrew from falling asleep. He laid the eleven month old down onto the nearby changing table.

"Shh, we've got to be quiet so we don't wake Mommy or Sister." Kurt told his little boy, leaning down close to his face when Andy was starting to fuss a little.

Angle was nowhere as quick as Stephanie was when it came to changing a diaper. The amount of time the diaper change was requiring caused the baby to be impatient. Andy hated lying still for too long, just as all other children his age did.

Finally, with a fresh diaper on his son, Kurt decided to take the baby with him downstairs to the living room so that he could watch some television. He was hoping that Andrew would fall asleep in his arms while he tried to keep his mind occupied with one of the shows on his DVR. A few finger presses to the universal touch screen remote, and Angle had settled on the latest episode of TNA Impact.

"Lots of Foley and Jarrett, where are the young guys?" Angle commented aloud. He was quickly fast forwarding through the beginning of the show. His comments were really just him expressing his thoughts aloud. It wasn't like little Andrew even knew what his father was talking about. The baby had managed to wiggle out of his daddy's grasp so that he could slide off the couch.

"Dadada Dat Dada dat?" Andy cried out holding up to his father a glass coaster from the coffee table.

"No, no, no, put that down. That's glass, little man. Come sit with Daddy." Kurt told his youngest child.

He was quick to remove the coaster from the baby's hand and set it back on the table. Angle then lifted his son onto his lap. Being contained by his father's muscular arms caused Andrew to tense up his body. His little face turned red as he let out a loud whine.

"Hey, you can't be mad at Daddy too. Let's get your pacey and a toy." Kurt told his baby in a strained voice as he reached out for the pacifier that was on the coffee table and then a little colorful plastic Fisher Price toy train from the floor.

With a pacifier in his mouth and a toy in his hands, Andy fell silent and content sitting on his father's lap. His cooperation came just in time for Angle to grab hold of the universal remote and return it to normal speed.

A singles bout between Frankie Kazarian and Christopher Daniels was now displayed on the flat screen LCD television that was the primary source of light in the dark living room. The match was fast paced with a large number of unique spots that had the TNA fans on their feet chanting their signature, "This is awesome!" chant.

"These guys should be in the main event. They have so much raw talent. I miss working with them." Kurt admitted aloud in a mutter, expressing his thoughts out loud while his eyes remained fixed on the action.

Andrew's small right hand found its way to his right eye which he rubbed. The other side of his face was lying on his father's bare chest. The tranquility and low volume of the television in the barely lit room contributed to the baby's sleepiness. The small plastic toy fell from the sleeping baby's grasp and tumbled to the carpet floor. The small disturbance caused Angle to briefly take his eyes off of the match. Realizing that his son was a sleep, he placed a soft kiss on top of his head.

Kurt loved his youngest child. He would never forget the day Stephanie came back into his life and announced that they were pregnant. Angle was sure that it was the pregnancy that gave Steph the courage and conviction to finally leave Levesque.

She wasn't the only one who made a life altering decision in the mist of the pregnancy. Kurt himself had made the decision to leave TNA Wrestling, the company that had been so good to him. He didn't just go back to his former employer; Kurt married into World Wrestling Entertainment. As much as he loved TNA, WWE would now and forever be his home because Stephy and their child were there.

While some of his long time friends in TNA were supportive of his decision to go back to WWE, many of the young guys saw him as a sellout. Coming into TNA in 2006, Angle had made a promise to the young talent to devote himself to working with the young stars and help TNA grow. It had to come across as very sudden when he announced his departure. Long term storylines had to be revised and many of the young guys suffered with demotion back to their mid card status. The boys in the back made no attempt to hide the fact that they had lost respect for him. This, above anything else, bothered Kurt. He thrived on being a leader and respected by others. The idea of his popularity amongst his peers being diminished was the hardest thing about giving up his legacy in TNA Wrestling so that he and Stephanie could be together. While being with Steph and their baby was most important to him, there were times like this that he would question his decision to abandon TNA Wrestling.

The night seemed endless and Angle was barely able to sleep at all. Leaving his bed at the break of dawn, he felt like he was sleepwalking as he made his way to the kitchen. Kurt was exhausted. He let out a long sigh and then a yawn before bringing his hands to his face. Angle was sitting at the kitchen table with a hot cup of coffee in front of him. Kurt wasn't used to being up before Stephanie and the kids. It felt weird sitting in the kitchen without his family. There was no activity going on and the silence was beginning to bother him.

It wasn't until five minutes after seven that the silence was broken by the voices of his three year old stepdaughter and wife coming from the other end of the house. The voices, which were first inaudible, became clearer as Stephanie and Aurora walked toward the kitchen. Aurora was asking her mother question after question that ranged from where they were going today to what she was going to have for breakfast. Kurt flashed a weak smile the moment they entered the kitchen.

"I made coffee." Angle said aloud. He was making his presence known in the kitchen even though he was sure that Steph saw him in her peripheral. Hopefully she wasn't still mad at him and they could start the new day with a fresh start.

"I can see that…" Steph replied back in a dull mutter; so much for starting over with the new day.

Her face remained unchanged as she lowered Andrew from her hip onto his feet. Andy wobbled only slightly; he then followed Stephanie close behind like a little duckling following its mother. Steph approached the counter and began to pour herself a cup of coffee.

"We go outside and play now, Daddy?" Aurora asked as she walked up to where her stepfather was sitting with her finger pointed toward the sliding glass doors to the deck and backyard.

Hearing little Aurora refer to him as her daddy was enough to make Kurt push aside his feelings of fatigue and disconnect. Even though Steph was still giving him the cold shoulder, her little daughter knew nothing of his behavior and was going about her day as if it were any other.

"That's 'Kurt', Aurora. After we have breakfast and get dressed, we'll go see your daddy." Stephanie corrected her child quickly before Angle could even reply to the three year old.

"I wanna go out…" Aurora whined in a bit of a strained voice while she now stood on her tippy toes trying to reach the handle of the sliding door herself.

"Listen to Mommy, little girl." Angle said aloud to his stepdaughter as he got to his feet.

"I wanna play outside!" She said in an outburst of anger before hitting the glass door with her right hand.

"Now how did this sack of potatoes get over here by the door? I don't remember putting them there." Kurt announced with a smile before running up behind Aurora and lifting her up off her feet.

Aurora let out a burst of laughter as Angle made her do a backward flip before he put her on to his right shoulder like he was carrying a heavy sack. Her daughter's continued laughter caused Steph to watch her husband interacting with her daughter. She let a small smile shine through for only a few seconds so that her husband wouldn't see. Even though she was still upset with him after last night, he really did make it hard for her to stay mad, especially with the way he was with little Aurora. The smile though was sort lived and quickly faded as she thought back to Angle's comments from the night before.

"Now where should I throw this heavy sack?" Angle asked aloud as he walked around the kitchen pretending that he was looking for a spot while Aurora howled with laughter, kicking her feet.

Kurt quickly spun around in place for a few rotations before finally choosing to sit Aurora down in her booster seat so that she would be ready to have her breakfast.

"You can put your son in his high chair too." Stephanie told her husband in a stagnate tone of voice. She wasn't even looking in his direction when she spoke to him. Steph just wanted to go about her morning routine in getting the kids and herself ready for the day.

Angle didn't bother replying to her bland request; he simply began to do as his wife requested by making his way across the kitchen to where his son was standing next to Stephanie. Andy looked up the moment his father approached him. Taking the cue of his father bending down, Andrew lifted his arms to be picked up. Kurt smiled proudly looking on at his third child the moment he was in his arms.

"Why don't I take the baby with me for the day? That way you can devote your time to Aurora and her visit with her father." Angle suggested as he moved to the counter where Steph was standing.

"Take him where, to the UFC event? No, that's no place for an eleven month old." Stephanie quickly replied before moving away from the kitchen counter that her husband was standing at and toward the refrigerator.

"And being around the guy who pushed him off a sofa is? It's no secret that Paul hates the fact that we have a child together. The baby being there is only going to cause problems." Kurt quickly answered back switching the child to his other hip when the baby tried to go after the sugar bowl on the countertop.

"No Kurt, the only one who's causing problems is you! You have absolutely no proof that Paul has ever done anything to Andrew! You go on and on how petty and irrational he is when you're behaving just like him! I'm done discussing this with you! Andrew Vincent is not going with you today!" Steph yelled showing her annoyance and frustration with her husband's attitude. Her outburst caused Andy to fuss and pull on his brown baby fine hair with his little hands, while Aurora arched her body in her chair as she tried to look behind her to see why her mommy was yelling.

"Look, even your son knows that you're being an ass. Give him to me." Stephanie told Angle after she put down the breakfast ingredients on the counter. Noticing that raising her voice bothered the kids, she calmed herself down. She held her arms out toward her husband waiting for him to give her the baby.

"I'm the problem now? I'm being an ass? What the hell is going on with you? Here, take the baby. Have a good fucking time with your ex." Angle said forcefully, almost yelling as he handed over their child. Once Andrew was in his mother's arms, Kurt stormed out of the kitchen.

If Angle didn't know better he would have thought he was dealing with Karen. Stephanie was playing the part of an extremely moody bitch that his ex-wife had mastered. Who would have thought one mistake on his part last night at dinner could cause a shit storm from the missus? It was like she was slipping into her old on screen role of Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley. But this wasn't the year 2000 and she wasn't twenty three anymore. Still, on screen roles aside, this wasn't her usual behavior. She had never been so sensitive when it came to her ex-husband during the first year of their marriage. Was the first year of marriage simply the "honeymoon" period for them? Was this what their marriage was going to be like from now on?


	24. Chapter 24

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-Four

Paul sat waiting alone in the back patio of Vince and Linda's home. Linda was off getting him a glass of lemonade so that he could relax while awaiting the arrival of his daughter and ex-wife. Lucky for Levesque, it was only his former mother-in-law that was there to greet him when he arrived a bit early for his visit. There was no sign of Vince at all and Paul didn't bother inquiring about his former father-in-law's whereabouts. Linda McMahon was a class act and always treated Paul with respect, even when his marriage with her daughter had been on shaky ground which led to their divorce.

Despite the relaxing atmosphere at the McMahon estate, Levesque had wanted Stephanie and Aurora to have already been waiting there for him when he arrived. At least that's how he had imagined the visit the numerous times he envisioned it in his head. The notion of spending the day with the two most important girls in his life was all he could think about since Friday.

"Stephanie's here with the kids. She will be out to join you momentarily. I'll give you guys some time to visit. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask." Linda said with a nice smile the moment she returned and sat the glass of lemonade down on the glass patio table in front of Paul.

Stephanie and the kids had arrived? Both children were with her? Not just his Aurora but Angle's child as well? That baby was like an annoying growth on Stephanie. Every single time Paul saw her, Kurt's kid was in her arms or somewhere in close proximity to put a damper on any sign of rekindled flames between them. It wasn't fair. Even if Kurt Angle himself wasn't there to ruin his time with Stephanie, his and Steph's child was going to be there; a constant reminder of the fact that she had moved on with Angle.

"Great, can't wait to see my baby girl!" Paul replied with enthusiasm after just a moment of hesitation. He wanted to push all 'Kurt Angle' related thoughts out of his mind so that he could enjoy his time with Stephanie and their daughter. This was a real opportunity to get close to them and he damn sure didn't want to ruin it.

"Hey, sorry we're late. Little Princess Aurora didn't want to wear the first four dresses I put her in this morning. I can't believe she's already picky about what she wears. I hope you weren't waiting for us long." Stephanie announced quickly after exiting her parents' home via the French doors and descending the back deck stairs.

"It's okay, I'm just glad you two are here." Paul quickly said back with a broad smile as he watched Steph walking his way with both of her children.

The mere sight of his former wife was all that was needed to up lift his spirits. As a matter of fact, he had not felt this good since the last time he was with her. Steph was like a forbidden drug that he was addicted to and so desperately craved. He wondered how long he was going to have to do without being with her. It was killing him.

Even dressed in a simple white t-shirt and black shorts with her hair pulled back, she still looked absolutely stunning. Levesque loved the fact that she had lost all of the weight she had gained from her pregnancy a year ago. Just like she did after she had Aurora, Steph had gotten herself back into great shape and was definitely a hot mommy. Even with Angle's baby on her hip, she looked very sexy.

"Granny, Granny, look! I bringed my puppy!" Aurora exclaimed holding her stuffed puppy dog high over her head for her grandmother to see it as she ran to her. She was wearing a purple little cotton sun dress with white sandals. Steph had gathered her little light brown hair and put it up in a nice little bun on top of her head.

"Oh I see! I think your daddy would like to see your puppy dog too. He came to visit with you and Mommy." Linda replied after she squatted down to talk to her granddaughter at high level and to hug her. Paul took Linda bringing him into the conversation with Aurora as his cue to try and interact with his child. He smiled wide and bent down to speak to his little girl.

"Hey Aurora, how's my little girl? I brought you a surprise." Paul told his child as he noticed that Stephanie had caught up to her daughter and was now right behind her, listening to what he was telling their daughter.

"Oh wow, Aurora, Daddy brought you a surprise! I wonder what it is!" Steph said out loud with enthusiasm. She was going to do her best to support her ex-husband in his effort to have Aurora warm up to him.

"Daddy got a surprise? Where? I want it!" Aurora hollered out loud with excitement as she jumped a few times in place.

Levesque was pleased that his daughter was genuinely excited by him telling her that he had a surprise for her. He quickly went over to where he had been sitting and reached his hand into the small black duffel bag. Paul had placed Aurora's surprise in there before going to the gym early in the morning. The McMahon estate was his stop right after.

"My kitty cat!" The three year old exclaimed the moment she saw the toy emerge from the bag.

Levesque let out a chuckle after seeing his daughter's excitement. He flicked on the switch underneath the toy so that it would come alive in his hands for his daughter. With the toy purring and moving slowly, Paul knelt down in front of Aurora so that she could have access to her toy.

"Look Mommy! Look baby brother and Granny! It's my kitty cat!" Aurora yelled out pointing at the toy as she looked at all of them around her, making sure that everyone saw what her surprise was.

"I see, sweetheart. Wasn't that a nice surprise from Daddy?" Steph asked as she gently squatted down to let her son stand on his feet in the grass after he let out a whine to signal him wanting to be put down.

"Mommy, you hold puppy." Aurora directed handing her mother her stuffed dog which Steph took from her without question while at the same time watching over her youngest child who kept trying to toddle away.

"I love my baby kitty cat!" Aurora told Paul as she went to take the toy from him so she could hug it. The moment Aurora leaned in and took the toy, Paul brought her into his arms for a hug.

"I'm glad, baby." Paul whispered as he hugged her tight.

He gave her a soft kiss on top of her head before closing his eyes and enjoying having his child in his arms. When Paul opened his eyes, still embracing Aurora, he saw that Stephanie was smiling at him in approval. He mirrored back a smile. They were finally reconnecting as a family. The day was going perfectly.

"Hey, glad you could make it." Lesnar said extending his hand to Kurt. Brock's UFC heavyweight championship was draped over his massive shoulder. The champion fighter was already in his white and black signature shorts that were decorated with all his sponsors. His muscular torso was covered with a white t-shirt displaying his signature skull graphics.

Lesnar and the other UFC fighters looked to be out of place amongst the sea of decently dressed guests at the pre-show event. All the fighters already looked ready to step inside the octagon. Chuck Liddell, Anderson Silva, Shane Carwin and others were posing with guests for pictures. The press was treating them like rock stars.

"Yeah, sorry I'm a little late." Angle apologized accepting the handshake from his friend. Angle had just put on his backstage VIP pass that allowed Angle access to the afternoon press junket for the event along with the ability to go backstage at any time during the event itself.

"So the wife didn't come? Rena was hoping she would change her mind." Brock inquired noticing right away that Stephanie was not with Angle.

"No, she's still pissed at me over last night. It seems like I can't do anything right these days." Kurt confessed looking down at his feet. He was a bit embarrassed by the fact that his own wife didn't want to accompany him to the event. There was Brock with his wife, Rena, while he was by himself.

"Yeah, she always seemed like a ball buster to me. You've got more patience than I do. I'd never put up with her shit." Lesnar commented.

"That's my wife you are talking about. I like the fact that I have a powerful woman behind me. I offered to be with her and the kids today but she didn't want me around." Angle replied following Lesnar further into the conference hall where Rena was standing talking to some of the other fighters' wives.

"Hi Kurt, I'm glad you could make it." Mrs. Lesnar said with a smile giving Kurt a quick hug that he returned.

"Well I hate to say it, but it sounds to me like she wants time alone with Levesque."

"Stop stirring the pot, you!" Rena scolded her husband with a light punch to the air before she turned back around to continue her conversation with the other wives.

"This is quite a press event. Does Dana White always host these things before an event?" Kurt asked completely changing the subject. He didn't want to comment on Brock's opinion of why Steph didn't want him to be with her. It was bad enough he had his own suspicions, hearing it from his friend as well was too much.

"No, not always. Since the event is taking place here in New York, it is being much more publicized that usual." Lesnar replied back.

"Hey Kurt, I knew I was bound to run into you at one of these events."

The sound of a familiar voice caused Angle to turn around and see his brother-in-law, Shane, walking toward him. He was wearing a casual suit and a VIP pass. In his right hand he had a rolled up program for tonight's event.

"Hey Shane O, I didn't know you were going to be here. How are Marissa and the boys?" Angle asked with a smile as he gave his brother-in-law a handshake and a hug. Lesnar saw that Angle was going to be talking to his brother-in-law so he decided to go put himself in the spotlight with the press.

"They're good. Marissa is at home with them. How are my sister and the kids? I take it you are flying solo for this event?" Shane inquired with a nudge of his elbow into Kurt's ribs.

"Yeah, Steph's really pissed at me. This is the first fight we've had where we haven't made up within a few hours…" Kurt muttered in a reply that only Shane could hear.

"Wait, what's going on with you two? I thought things were going well. Didn't you just have your one year anniversary?" McMahon asked with a puzzled look on his face as he lead his sister's husband away from the group of people so that they could talk alone.

"Things were going well until Levesque showed up at my house insisting that he and Steph made out right in my kitchen the last time he was with her alone. Ever since he told me, I've been noticing how sensitive she is about him. Suddenly Paul is the wonderful father of Aurora and I'm selfish and inconsiderate." Angle explained to Shane.

"You don't actually believe that Steph would do anything with her ex, do you? Paul's just making up stuff to cause problems. He hasn't ever been right since his marriage to Steph fell apart. If I were you, I wouldn't listen to a word he says." McMahon said back in a serious tone of voice.

"That still doesn't explain why Steph is being so protective of him. You should have seen how pissed off she got when Brock and I were joking about Levesque at dinner last night. She said it was because of Aurora."

"She probably feels guilty as a parent that her child's father is being talked about right in front of her. My sister is a loving mother. She'd do anything to protect and love both Aurora and Andrew. Try and think about it from her prospective." Shane pointed out.

"I'm trying to, but I can't think of a reason why she needs to stay with Aurora during Paul's visitation at your parents' place. I mean, Linda is going to be there to supervise. I just can't stop thinking that Paul is getting the opportunity to be close to my wife. And there isn't a damn thing I can do about it…"

"You should hear yourself. You're sounding paranoid. My sister loves you. The day you married her was definitely the happiest I've ever seen her. She's happy with you. Paul knows that and he's jealous. Can't you see that? You getting all upset and fighting with Steph is what he wants." Shane explained looking Kurt right in the eyes. He was trying to get through to him.

"I know that I'm playing right into that manipulative bastard's hand; Just the thought of him moving in on my wife…"

"Don't even think about it. Even if he does try something, Steph won't put up with it. I know my baby sister. I know how heartbroken and disgusted she was with Dad when she found out he was stepping out on our mother back in the nineties. Plus, look at what she went through with Paul when he cheated on her with that bimbo photographer. Do you really think she would turn around and do the same thing to you?"

Would she? Kurt couldn't help but think back to the fall out of when Stephanie caught Paul cheating in their home. She made love with him; more than once in the mist of her confusion and hurt. Their son, Andrew, had been the product of that chain of events. While Angle had always seen those first two times of sexual congress as pure love making, he now wondered if Steph had seen them as a revenge screw to get back at Paul.

"I would like to think not. I hate that I've been put into a position to question my wife's faithfulness. It happened with Karen on some occasions but never Stephanie. She is my soul mate." Angle muttered in a hoarse whisper that Shane had to lean close to hear. Kurt's hand had to quickly wipe away a few tear droplets from his eye before they could cascade down his face. He wasn't going to be seen crying at a UFC press event.

"And who put you in that position, Kurt? It wasn't Stephanie. You have no real evidence that she has been anything but a faithful loving wife to you. Use your head, who's to blame for your marriage problems?"

"That shit stain, Levesque… He thinks that I'm some dumb jock that he can get over on. I should smash his face in." Angle muttered through gritted teeth.

"No, no you shouldn't. That's exactly the reaction he wants. You want to fix things with Steph, don't you? You need to make things right with Steph."

A large durable blue picnic blanket was laid out on the grass. It was a perfect day for a picnic in the grass as Linda McMahon had mentioned in the form of a suggestion. Paul and Stephanie were sitting on the blanket with their daughter having lunch. Linda had taken baby Andrew into the house so that Steph would not be preoccupied with her youngest child.

"She's getting so big. She looks so much like you, Steph." Paul observed as both he and his ex-wife watched their daughter play with both her stuffed dog and her toy kitten next to them on the blanket.

"Yeah she is getting big. She reminds me so much of you at times. The faces she makes and her sense of humor. She's such a joy." Steph told her ex-husband with a smile.

"She's the best of the both of us. I'm so thankful for her….And for you." Paul told Stephanie in a loving voice. His hand he brought to her face; the back of his hand softly brushed across her cheek.

"She is the best thing we did together. I'm glad you think so too." She quickly replied with a polite smile moving her face away from his touch so that she could reach for her plate of food.

"Mommy, look! I teached Puppy to do a trick! Look, Mommy!" Aurora exclaimed with glee as she look over at her mother for approval as she tossed the stuffed animal in the air.

"Wow, what a great trick you taught Puppy! Wasn't that a great trick, Daddy?" Steph said. She smiled at her daughter before looking over at Paul.

"It was a great trick. Does the puppy dog have a name?" Paul asked his daughter.

"His name is Puppy. And the kitty's name is Kitty cat. I want them to be friends but Puppy chases kitty. See?" Aurora said before she grabbed hold of both of the toys and made the stuffed dog follow behind the toy cat as she moved them both along the blanket.

Paul was impressed with his three year old's imagination. She had a little storyline created for her toys that she used to entertain herself by playing out. She definitely had her mommy's creativity.

"I thought they were friends, sweetie." Steph told her little girl as she lovely fixed her hairdo that had come partly undone by her physical play.

"Maybe Puppy is chasing the kitty because he misses being her being his best friend and wants to make up to her so she will like him again." Levesque explained to his daughter. Even though his words were being spoken to Aurora, his eyes were focused on Stephanie. Steph's eyebrows furrowed as she wondered what exactly Paul was getting at.

"Well, it is good that Puppy wants to be a good puppy dog but Puppy and Kitty can't be best friends anymore." Stephanie replied a moment after Paul put forth the obvious analogy that was intended for her and not just talk for their daughter.

"Why can't Puppy and Kitty be best friends again?" Levesque asked with a weak smile as he looked right into his his ex-wife's eyes.

"Because kitty cats don't like puppy dogs! Kitty's best friend is Teddy Bear! Teddy Bear is at home." Aurora added with a few giggles. She liked playing pretend with her parents.

"That's right, Teddy Bear is Kitty's new best friend." Stephanie said quickly after Aurora added a comment to what had become a dialogue solely between Paul and Steph.

"But Puppy and Kitty had promised to be best friends forever…" Paul muttered as he placed his hand on top of Steph's. Her eyes widened as she looked down at her leg were her hand was resting with Paul's on top of it.

"Sorry to interrupt your picnic, but little Andrew's fever started coming back and I couldn't find his medicine in the diaper bag." Linda announced aloud as she walked up to where Paul, Stephanie, and Aurora were sitting on the picnic blanket. She had her grandson on her hip and the diaper bag in her free hand. Once Andy caught sight of his mommy he began to whine for her with her arms stretched out toward her.

"Oh my poor little bear cub, come here sweetie." Steph said lovingly with a smile. She quickly moved her hand out from underneath Paul's and stood up to meet her mother so that she could take her son.

"Did you check in the side pockets?" Stephanie asked Linda the moment she had her little boy in her arms.

"I looked in every pocket. Do you think you forgot it at the house?"

"I know I grabbed it and put it in a bag, I was in such a hurry to get here because we were late. Check Aurora's bag, I could have stuck it in there." Steph told her mom in between giving her youngest child kisses on the cheek.

Yet again, Angle's baby was getting in the way of the visit. How hard was it for Linda to keep the baby in the house? Paul hoped that Steph didn't forget to bring the medicine with her. That would surely be a lame excuse for her to cut his visitation short and leave. Kurt's sickly baby should have stayed home with him. This was his time with Stephanie.

"Aurora, why don't you go inside with Granny and help her look for your brother's medicine. I'm sure Granny will fix you a dish of ice cream." Steph suggested to her child before Linda went to look in the house.

"Okay! Granny, I want some strawberry and chocolate ice cream pweaze!" Aurora yelled with excitement as she ran to be with her grandmother.

Once Paul and Stephanie were alone, Steph sat back down next to her ex on the blanket with Andrew in her lap.

"What was up with all the metaphors, Paul?" Steph asked bluntly. A single thin eyebrow was raised showing her curiosity as she awaited an answer from him.

"What metaphors? I was just playing with Aurora. You know, fostering her creativity." He heard himself lie.

What was he suppose to say? That he so desperately missed her that he was resorting to expressing his feelings with Aurora's stuffed animals? There really was no need to blatantly express his feelings. With the seeds of deception he had planted for Kurt Angle, it would be only a matter of time before their marriage imploded from within. And when that happened, he would be there for his heartbroken Stephy.

"Okay whatever." Steph said rolling her eyes before pulling Andrew back into her lap when he tried to put his hands into her nearby plate of leftover food.

"I'm really happy that you are starting to make an effort to spend time with Aurora. That's really important to me. I think it's vital that you bond with her because I want you to be in her life. And since you are now seeing Torrie, I think it's important that Aurora gets to know her too. Andrew's first birthday party is this coming weekend. We're doing just a small family get together at my parents' beach house in Florida. I think it would be great if you and Torrie could come and be part of them family for the celebration." Stephanie said with a smile as she extended the invite to her ex.

Levesque wondered what he should say. Should he be honest and tell Stephanie that he and Torrie were over? He had evaded discussing her the last time Steph had brought her up in conversation. Now, Steph wanted Torrie present with him at her kid's birthday party.

"I don't think Torrie is going to be able to come on such short notice. Isn't it enough with just me there to visit with Aurora?" Paul asked back with a smirk. He was trying to get Torrie out of the picture without actually telling Steph that the relationship ended.

"Well, just call her and see if she can come. I think her attendance is the only way I'll be able to sell you coming to Andrew's birthday party to Kurt and the rest of the family."

Why did it matter what Angle and the rest of the McMahon family thought? Since when did Steph let her family dictate what she did? This was definitely the first time since his abrupt breakup with Torrie that he wished he hadn't ended it. Her attending was now what stood between Paul spending more time with Aurora and Stephanie. A birthday party was the perfect to further mess with Angle and get closer to Steph.

But going to the party wasn't going to happen if he was no longer dating Torrie Wilson. He had exactly one week to somehow talk Wilson into attending the party with him. That was next to impossible given that she now saw through his fake feelings for her and wanted nothing to with him. But he was the king of manipulation. Surely he would be able to convince Torrie to give him a second chance. It was worth a shot.

"Okay, I'll ask her."


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-Five

"I'm telling you, Shawn, Steph is going to be mine once again. I'd give it to the end of the year before she's filing for divorce from Angle." Levesque reported to his best friend via his cell phone as he walked into his house. He was just coming home from spending the day with Stephanie and their daughter.

This was the first time in a while that Paul had called Shawn. He was just calling his friend now because of how good he felt about his most recent visit with his ex-wife.

"How was it spending time with Aurora? Did she seem to warm up to you?" Shawn asked. Michaels disregarded the comments Levesque had made about the Angles and was more concerned about how his friend faired with spending time with his daughter.

"Yeah I was great with her. I could tell Steph was eating it up. She didn't come out and say it but I'm thinking her and Angle are having some marital discord. She spent the whole day at her parents' house with me and where was he? I bet what I told him about me and Steph got to him. It's so easy to fuck with him." Levesque explained with a huge smile.

"Well I hope you are putting this much effort into spending time with your little girl. She's the reason for those visits, Paul." Shawn reminded his friend. He was trying to keep the focus of the conversation on the three year old but Paul wasn't getting it.

"Stephy is falling back in love with me. I mean, why else would she want me at her kid's first birthday party? She's expecting me to bring Torrie Wilson with me because she thinks we are dating. I just have to figure out how to convince Torrie to go with me. Oh well, I'll think of something. Hey, I've got to go, man. I'll talk to you soon."

Baby Andrew was fast asleep in his crib after getting a dose of his medicine, and Aurora had been next to be put to bed. A few hugs and kisses were given before Steph left her little girl's room with the nightlight on. With both children asleep, Stephanie walked back downstairs and into her spacious kitchen. She glanced at the green digital read out of her microwave clock. 9:15; it felt later than that. Kurt wouldn't be home until much later. The UFC event had just gotten underway. It would be just her and the kids for most of the night.

Steph let out a large yawn before she made her way over to the kitchen counter where Aurora's dinner plate and Andrew's baby food bowl were still sitting. She had been busy with the kids ever since dinner and hadn't had a chance to clean up. Even though she was ready to go to bed, she refused to leave the kitchen a mess. She placed both the dish and the bowl in the sink and then turned on the kitchen faucet. With the water on, she shifted the chrome faucet handle to the left. As she waiting the few moments for the water to get hot, she grabbed the handle to her energy save dishwasher and opened it.

"I have to do everything…Can't do a thing right…" Steph muttered to herself the moment she pulled out the top rack of the dish washer.

Kurt had loaded the glasses and bowls in the wrong way. It wasn't done to her standard, just like most of the other chores he did around the house. Maybe it was his way of trying to get out of doing them: If she kept having to fix his screw ups around the house, she would eventually stop asking him to do the chores. Lord knows Kurt would just be happy playing with the kids, working out, and watching MMA matches.

After rearranging all the glasses, bowls, dishes, and silverware in the dish washer to her specifications, she rinsed the two dishes in the sink and then placed them in the washer. The abrupt sound of the garage door in the laundry room opening caused her to jump as she took a sharp inhale. It just about scared her to death. Steph stood up right, her eyes focused on the doorway to the laundry room. Her eyes widened as she began to hear footsteps. She held her breath, knowing that the steps were getting closer.

"You scared the shit out of me. What are you doing home so early?" Steph asked after letting herself exhale when she saw it was her husband that had come home. Her heart was pounding.

Kurt looked like the proverbial deer in the headlights as he stood there wide eyed with one of his arms behind his back. He looked like the delinquent teenager that had just gotten caught getting home way passed curfew.

"I didn't stay for the event. I'd rather be with you and the kids. I want to apologize." Kurt muttered before he slowly revealed the reason why he had is arm behind him.

Steph raised a single eyebrow, tilting her head to the side as she caught sight of the beautiful bouquet of two dozen red roses. Was this his way of smoothing things over after their arguments from that morning and the night before? Angle studied his wife's face, waiting for any hint of happiness or love to surface.

During the awkward moments of silence, Stephanie couldn't help but think back to the many times during her first marriage that Paul would apology to her with roses. It was a tired cliché: husband screws up and comes home with flowers to make all his misdeeds disappear.

"So what happens now, Kurt? You flash flowers from behind your back and I'm supposed to forget why I'm mad at you?" Steph asked sounding unmoved by the bouquet of roses. With a bend of her leg, she quickly slammed shut the dishwasher door forcing the upper rack to be pushed back into the unit with the sound of glasses clanking together.

"No, I don't expect that. You have every right to be mad at me…" Kurt confessed in a defeated tone of voice while he closed the distance between himself and his wife.

"I was a selfish jerk both last night and this morning. That's the last thing I want to be and I know that's the last thing you want in your life, another jealous husband. I just love you so much, Stephy. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have you and the kids." Angle explained. Toward the end, his voice began to crack as his raw emotions began to spill out in the form of tears.

Stephanie's bitchy demeanor was quickly replaced with sympathy and love for her husband. Slowly, Steph took the bouquet of roses from her husband and laid them on the counter top. Seeing how visibly upset he was becoming showed her how serious he was about making things right between them. Why else would he blow off the UFC event to return to her if he wasn't serious?

"I love you too. I was just so hurt when you let Lesnar say all those terrible things about Aurora's father." Steph replied falling into his arms for an embrace. She was getting teary eyed too as she let her emotions come to the surface.

"I know, baby. I should have known that and stood up for you. I guess I get a little carried away with being one of the guys. I will never put you in that situation again…I promise you that." Angle told his wife in serious tone of voice.

After hearing Kurt's pledge, Steph let go of the embrace and looked him directly in the eyes. She was staring right into his greenish blue eyes to sense if he was speaking truthfully. Nothing gave her the impression that he wasn't.

"I also want you to promise me that you will end this animosity between you and Paul. I don't care who started it, I want you on your best behavior around him. Do it for Aurora." Stephanie instructed bringing her hands up to Kurt's face as she spoke to him.

Shane was right. If Kurt had got with his instincts and smashed Levesque's face in, it would have only pushed him farther away from Stephanie. It was now clear to Angle that Stephanie's recent focus on her ex-husband was only with her daughter in mind. Paul had been blowing smoke up his ass and it was the last time he would ever fall for it.

"Babe, you know I don't like the guy. If it was just me, I would be happy to never see him again. But I know it's not about me. I understand that it's important to you for Aurora to have a decent relationship with him. And if something is important to you and Aurora, then it's important to me too. I can't promise that I will be able to completely bury the hatchet with him. I'm going to try to be civil, but only for you, Steph. I'll do it for you."

A smile formed on Stephanie's face before she nodded in approval. She felt relieved that Kurt finally understood where she was coming from. Once again, they were on the same page. Her marriage was now one less thing she had to worry about.

Steph gave Kurt one more kiss on the lips before turning her attention to the bouquet of roses on the counter. She needed to cut the stems and put them in water. Stephanie turned her back on her husband before she took the plastic wrapping off the roses and grabbed.

"Are the kids in bed already?" Angle asked taking a quick look around the kitchen for any sign of his son or his stepdaughter.

"Yeah, of course they are, it's after nine. We spent all day outside so they both went down really easily. They were exhausted." Steph explained placing the roses in a vase that she grabbed from one of the kitchen cabinets.

"So it's safe to say that we have the entire night to ourselves?" He inquired further with a sly smile on his face. Kurt positioned himself directly behind his wife. His large hands he placed on her hips, pulling slowly pulling her back against his hard body.

"Possibly…Feels like someone wants some makeup sex…" Steph turned her head and replied with a giggle. She could feel that her husband was already ready to go.

As an unspoken way to answer his wife, Angle began kissing her neck while at the same time his hands slowly moved to the front of her body. He lovingly caressed her stomach with both hands before moving them lower.

"Hey, hey, not right now! We'll start fooling around when we get upstairs!" Steph exclaimed with a laugh and she grabbed her husband's thick arms with both of her hands and pulled so that his hands would be removed from inside her black shorts.

"I don't want to wait. Let's just fuck right here." Kurt replied with some heavy breathing. He was getting all worked up as he started grinding his lower half against his wife's backside.

"Aurora is right upstairs. What if she wakes up and comes in to the kitchen?" Steph explained turning around to hold her husband back for making any more advances.

"She won't. You said yourself that she's completely knocked out. We'll be really quiet." Kurt whispered with a smile, demonstrating how quiet he could be before he leaned forward and went right back to kissing her.

Stephanie sighed, giving in to her husband's overwhelming need to make love to her right there and then. Their kissing continued as her hands undid his dress pants. The moment she had finished, Angle quickly pulled her t-shirt up and over her head and tossed it on the counter top. He reached behind his wife, beginning to fiddle with her bra clasp before she reached behind and undid it herself. Kurt immediately buried his face in her chest while Steph took a second to let her hair down. She then turned her attention to her husband's dress shirt and tie. She almost clawed the clothing off of him. Now, like her husband, Stephanie was ready and wanted to get right down to business. Angle sensed her urgency and took charge turning her around. A naughty smile formed on Steph's face as she leaned over the kitchen counter. She felt him forcefully pull her shorts and panties down causing her to step out of them. And then Angle did the same with his pants and briefs.

"Ugh fuck yes…We should fight and make up more often…" Kurt muttered in sheer ecstasy as he entered his wife with a strong thrust. Steph then matched both his moans and motion while closing her eyes. The night was ending better than they both expected it to.


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-Six

"Mommy, open! Mommy, open door! Me and baby brother are awaked! It's morning time, Mommy!" Aurora exclaimed banging on the double doors to the master bedroom before grabbing hold of the door handle and pulling on it with all of her weight.

All the commotion from Aurora caused Steph's head to pop off the pillow. Her hair was a mess and she was completely naked. While her and Kurt did have sex in the kitchen, it took place in their bedroom behind lock doors before the night was over. Stephanie's eyes squinted as she read the clock at her bedside table. It was only seven in the morning. Leave it to her three year old to be ready to take on the day that early.

"Aurora, Mommy will be out in a minute!" Steph called back to her daughter so that the child would stop banging on the door.

Slowly, Stephanie sat up. It was then she noticed that the bed sheet was completely off the bed and was laying on the floor. She then looked over to Kurt's side of the bed. Angle was laying flat on his stomach. His pillow wasn't even under his head but on the carpet floor below. His left arm was hanging off the bed and the right was stretched out in Steph's direction. She smiled as her eyes focused on his bare ass. He had the cutest butt. She wondered how on earth he could sleep through Aurora's wakeup call. It was when she leaned over him that she saw he was sleeping on his good hearing ear.

It wasn't until Steph went to get out bed that she noticed how sore she was. Basically, her entire lower half felt like she had just competed in a marathon two times over. She let herself plop back down on the bed causing her thighs to ache even more. This was just how she wanted to feel on a Monday morning when she had work to do. She was tired and wanted to go back to bed, but she was a mommy.

"Kurt, you shit, I am so sore!" Steph yelled with a smile at her husband after giving him a hard smack on his butt that she loved so much.

"What, hey, don't put all the blame on me, you wanted it harder…" Kurt replied to her after he was jolted out of his sleep. He turned and looked behind him at his butt that was still stinging from the hard slap his wife gave it him and then laid his head back down.

"Are you going to get up and help me with the kids?" Stephanie asked him as she slowly got up and put on a pair of underwear and then her nearby robe that she wrapped around her body and tied.

Steph folded her arms and awaited a response from her husband. All she got was the sound of him quietly snoring which told her that he had drifted back off to sleep. As sore as she was, Angle seemed completely exhausted from all the love making the night before. She walked around to his side of the bed and then leaned over him.

"Kurt! Are you getting up or not?" Steph screamed giving him a few more smacks on his ass.

"Why do you keep slapping my ass? Shit!" Kurt hollered back as he quickly rolled over on to his back so that his wife couldn't hit his butt again.

"I want to know if you're getting up to help me with Aurora and Andrew." Steph told him again as she sat gently down on his side of the bed.

"Just give me another half hour…I'll meet you downstairs…" Angle muttered during a yawn before he turned on his side with his back to his wife. He was going to try and get as much extra sleep as he could. Tonight was Monday Night RAW and he expected to have a match.

"I'm holding you to that. Don't think just because you screwed me for most of the night that you can shirk your parental responsibilities." Stephanie told him as she got up from sitting on the edge of the bed. He didn't reply for he had again fallen back asleep.

"Mommy's hair is funny!" Aurora laughed the moment her mother emerged from the master bedroom. The fact that Steph's hair was frizzy and looked like she teased it was a big joke to Aurora. Steph just gave her little girl a smile before she ran her hands through her hair trying her best to tame and smooth out her hair.

"Yeah Mommy's just a barrel of laughs today, isn't she." Steph replied back to her little girl while rubbing her head. The three year old continued to howl with laughter as she pointed up at her mom.

As tired as she was, Steph managed to fulfill the morning routine with her two children. Getting her son from his crib was quickly followed by a diaper change. Aurora stood by her mother the entire time, she was whining how she was ready to go downstairs and watch cartoons while Steph made her breakfast.

Finally coming downstairs with the children, Steph put the television on for Aurora tuned to her favorite morning show, Dora the Explorer. Stephanie then allowed Andrew free roam of the living room so that she could make the kids their breakfast in the nearby kitchen.

For whatever reason, Aurora's fisher price doll house was much more interesting to Andrew then all of his baby toys. The moment his mother had left him in the living room, he had quickly crawled over to his sister's toys. Aurora noticed that her little brother was touching her things and she left the sofa to intervene.

"No…No…No baby brother…no…" Aurora repeated over and over again in her little half brother's face every time she had to remove the plastic dog from his hand. Each time she took the toys from him he would let out a loud whine and reach for it.

"No touch, baby. It stays there." Aurora instructed as she put the same toy back in the little dollhouse where she had decided it belonged. When she had the toy put back in its place, she turned back around to watch Dora on the plasma television. Andy's eyes stayed focused on the plastic toy dog as he reached out yet again and picked it up.

"Hey! No! Give!" Aurora yelled when she noticed that Andrew had picked up the plastic toy and was banging it into the carpet floor while gibbering.

She grabbed hold of his hand and began to pry open his little fingers so that she could get her toy back. Having the dog figurine taken from him by force from his older sister, Andrew let out a loud whine and then began to cry the moment Aurora succeeded in taking the toy from him. With a great deal of force, Andy threw himself backwards so that he was then lying on his back on the carpet floor. He kicked his feet and hit his hands on the carpet floor several times while continuing his whining and crying.

"What's wrong with the baby?" Steph asked her three year old as she walked briskly into the living room and right to where Andrew was having a little hissy fit on the floor.

"This is mine, Mommy. Baby brother taked it." Aurora replied holding the toy dog up in the air for her mother to see before she placed it back into the dollhouse where she thought it belonged.

"Well will you share the toy with your brother? Can he just play with it?" Stephanie inquired with the hope of her daughter grasping the concept of sharing.

"No, the puppy dog goes in the house." She told her mother shaking her head while Andy continued to prostrate on the floor until his mother picked him up.

"Well I'm going to take your brother in the kitchen with me and finish making you breakfast. You watch your show and I'll call you when it's ready." Steph told her little girl while she put Andrew on her hip. He was still whining with his arms reaching out toward the toy.

Baby Andy's demeanor wasn't improved when his mother put him in his high chair at the breakfast table so that she could finish making Aurora's breakfast and warming up the baby food. The nearly one year old began to stiffen his entire body while he tried to arch his back to slide out of the chair. Luckily, Steph had fastened the safety belt on his high chair so he wasn't going anywhere.

"Andrew Vincent, what is going on with you today? You're acting like your Grandpa. Are you hungry and ready for your breakfast?" Stephanie asked her cranky baby as she set Aurora's plate of food on the table.

"Aurora, your breakfast is ready! Come in the kitchen so Mommy can put you in your booster seat!" Steph announced loudly so that her three year old could hear her over Andrew's fussing.

Aurora Rose came running into the kitchen with one of her little brother's toys. She stopped at Andrew's high chair and by standing on her tippy toes, she placed his little toy train on the high chair tray.

"Look baby brother, choo choo train! See!" She told her little brother with enthusiasm. With a push of her hand, Aurora made the toy roll across the tray toward the baby.

Seeing his toy put into motion by his half sister caused Andrew's whining to cease. His little eyebrows went up once and his wet mouth formed a smile as he reached for the toy.

"Aw, Aurora, that was so nice of you to bring your little brother a toy. You're such a big help to Mommy." Stephanie told her daughter with a smile. The three year old smiled up at her mommy proudly. She loved to receive praise when she was being a good girl.

"What's going on down here? I could hear him from upstairs. He made it impossible for me to get my extra thirty minutes. I gave up and took a shower and got dressed."

Kurt came walking into the kitchen with one of Andrew's pacifiers in his hand. He was dressed in a green Puma short sleeve shirt and a pair of shorts and sneakers. He looked a little worried as he walked up to the high chair. Besides the fact that his son's carrying on being echoed throughout the house kept him from getting his allotted thirty minutes, he was anxious to get downstairs and see what was going on.

"Everything is fine. Your son just had a little hissy fit but his sister helped me sooth him. I'm glad you're up. I've got a million and one things to do. Dad expects me to have creative completely in line; RAW needs to be ready for tonight and I have to have SmackDown taken care of for tomorrow." Steph told Kurt before she returned to the kitchen area to retrieve the baby food from the microwave. Angle sat his son's pacifier down on the breakfast table close to the high chair.

"How are you this morning, little girl? How about I get you seated at the table so you can eat your breakfast?" Angle told his stepdaughter with smile before he gave her a hug and lifted her up and into her booster seat.

Stephanie was obviously preoccupied and a bit overwhelmed by all her tasks for the day. She had completely forgotten to put her daughter in her seat after she put her breakfast down on the table.

"Babe, if you are worried about getting stuff done today, why don't I take the kids with me to RAW? That way you will have the rest of the day to get work done." Angle offered after approaching his wife. He was finally replying to her worrying aloud about her work load.

"Just you with both of the kids? I think that might be too much for you to take on by yourself. Why don't you just take the baby? I could invite Paul over to watch Aurora while I get my work done in the home office." Steph suggested giving the warmed up baby food a good stir with a spoon.

"Paul come here? To our house?" Angle asked thinking that he had misheard her. Steph couldn't have forgotten about the last time Paul was at their home visiting Aurora. The man was not to be trusted; especially when Kurt was not going to be there.

"Yeah, I mean, Andrew will be with you. I'll be busy getting work done. He will just be alone with Aurora. This is a perfect opportunity for her to get more time being around her daddy with me being close by." Stephanie explained walking back to where the kids were sitting so that she could begin feeding the baby.

"I thought that's what yesterday's visit was." Angle quickly replied following his wife back to the breakfast table.

"What do you have a problem with Aurora's father coming here to visit with her? Didn't you say last night that you wanted what's best for Aurora?" Steph asked bringing up his pledge to her from last night.

Kurt exhaled sharply and looked over at his little stepdaughter who was smiling at him while she fed herself her breakfast like a big girl. As much as he didn't like the idea of Paul being alone in his house with his wife, Angle was willing to concede to what Steph thought was best. After all, he trusted her completely and knew she wouldn't allow anything inappropriate to take place between herself and Levesque no matter how much her ex-husband wanted it.

"You're right, I do want what's best for Aurora. I guess it will be fine for you to have him over here."

"Well since we are already on the subject of Paul. Don't get upset until you hear me out but I invited him to Andrew's first birthday party down at the beach." Stephanie told her husband.

The news caused Angle's brows to furrow as he looked on puzzled at Stephanie. It was unbelievable how much time she wanted herself and Aurora to spend with Paul. It made no sense for Levesque to come to Andy's birthday party. It was going to be a small family party and he was no family to Kurt and Stephanie's son.

"I invited him under the condition that he bring Torrie along. The two of them have been dating. I think it's important for Torrie and Paul to be around Aurora. And it's going to be a family get together and if they are both there it will show Aurora that Paul is still a part of her family." Steph explained giving her logic for wanting to have her ex-husband at her youngest child's birthday party.

"Well, if Torrie is going to be there with him as his date, then I guess him being there won't be a problem. I'm glad you told me that you invited him. I would have been pissed if I found out he was invited when he actually showed up. Does Vince know you invited him?" Angle asked watching Steph spoon feed mashed fruit into his baby's mouth.

"Mommy, look, I eated eggs! I have my chocy milky now?" Aurora asked pointing at her plate.

"Good job eating all your eggs, sweetheart, you can have your chocolate milk now. Kurt's going to make it for you." Steph replied back to her little girl after she looked over at her. Kurt took that as his cue to get up and fix some chocolate milk for his stepdaughter in one of her sippy cups.

"Do you want it a little chocolaty or a lot?" Angle asked his stepdaughter holding his hands up in the air to illustrate the amount of chocolate he was referring to.

"A lot and in my pink cup pweeze!" Aurora exclaimed with excitement as she held her hands high in the air to show that she wanted her milk very chocolaty.

"Coming right up, Princess."

"What time are you planning on leaving with Andrew?" Steph inquired taking a moment to wipe baby food off of Andy's face.

"As soon as you can get him ready to leave; since RAW is in Pittsburgh tonight, I thought I'd try and get a hold of Karen so I could see Kyra and Kody. It would be good for Andrew to see his older brother and sister." Kurt told his wife as he got the milk from the refrigerator and began to pour it into Aurora's favorite cup.

"That's a good idea. If you are going to be leaving so early, I should probably call Paul now to make sure he hasn't already made plans for today." Steph replied getting up from where she was sitting. She had finished feeding the baby breakfast and was ready to bring the empty glass jar of baby food back into the kitchen to be thrown away.

Angle smirked as he watched his wife dispose of the glass container in the trash compactor and then lean over the counter top to reach the cordless phone from its receiver. In one fluid motion he lunged forward and smacked his right hand against her robe covered backside causing her to jump. The unexpected smack to her ass scared her and she turned around to shoot Angle.

"That's pay back!" Kurt said with a laugh while he watched his wife rub her butt that was still stinging from that good smack he gave it. He knew that her thighs and ass were hurting all morning.

"You sneaky bastard…" Steph muttered with a smile in almost a silent whisper. She didn't want her three year old to hear her reply.

"Mommy got a spanking!" Aurora then hollered with a great big belly laugh. It was the first time she had ever witnessed her mommy getting slap to the butt, and to her, it was a hilarious.


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-Seven

"You doing okay back there, little man?" Kurt asked, his eyes quickly darted to his escalades' rear view mirror in order to catch a glimpse of his baby.

The two of them were well on their way in their seven hour journey to Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. Angle was a bit nervous traveling with his eleven month old without the supervision and guidance of his wife. He worried that stopping to check the baby's diaper when the SUV needed gas wasn't cutting it.

Andrew was a good little traveler. He was sucking happily on his pacifier and every once in a while, speaking gibberish out from around it. His mommy had attached his pacifier to his little shirt with a blue strap so that he wouldn't lose it during the long trip. Kurt was glad his wife did that because the baby had a habit of throwing his pacifier and then crying for it.

"Time for a pit stop!" Kurt announced as he pushed the turn signal switch up and began to drift over to the exit lane for the upcoming rest area complex.

Angle drove behind the service station in into the area that was designated parking for big tractor trailers. It was remote parking where he wouldn't have to worry about making a scene which would mean having to sign more than a dozen autographs before he could even change his son's diaper. Here in the back parking he was surrounded by parked eighteen wheelers and his only company was an elderly woman a yard or so away who was walking her little white poodle.

Kurt grabbed his cell phone from the cup holder and stuck it in his back pocket before he went to get Andrew. Little Andy was more than happy to be taken out of his car seat and into his daddy's arms. Kurt, with the baby in one arm, went around to the back of his white escalade and opened the back hatch. It was there in the ample cargo space that Kurt laid down a white changing mat and then his son on top of it.

"Someone's a stinky boy. It's a good thing we stopped." Kurt commented, his voice full of enthusiasm as he peeled back his son's soiled diaper. Andy giggled and spoke his baby talk with the same inflection while his daddy lifted his legs to take the diaper off him and replace it with a clean one.

Angle then took a moment to take his cell phone from his back pocket and found his ex-wife's cell phone number from list long list of contacts. He pressed the cell phone to his ear with his shoulder when it began to ring and he resumed his diaper duties.

"Hi this is Karen, I'm not here right now, leave a message and I'll get back to ya!" Karen's voice mail played followed by a beep to signal when it was time for him to leave his message.

"Hey Karen, this is Kurt. Listen, RAW is in Pittsburgh tonight. I'm on my way now actually. I was hoping I could stop by and visit with Kyra and Kody. I've got Andrew with me so his brother and sister can see him. Anyway, call me back as soon as you can. I should be in Pittsburgh in an hour or two."

"Hey glad you could make it over today. Come on in, Aurora is in the living room watching her cartoons. I'm sure she will be happy to see you." Stephanie told her ex-husband with a smile on her face as she motioned for him to cross the threshold of the Angle home.

Paul returned the smile as he entered the house. He was beyond thrilled when he got the call from Steph earlier in the day. Spending the day with his two favorite girls without hide nor hair of Kurt Angle or his offspring was his idea of a perfect day.

"Aren't you happy to see me?" Paul asked giving his former wife a flirtation smile as he closed some of the space between them so that she was looking right in his hazel eyes. The eyes of the man she was once deeply in love with.

"Of course I am. It's great that you could come over. I have so much work that I need to get done and this is the perfect opportunity for you and Aurora to spend some quality time together." Steph replied fixing the collar of his polo shirt.

Paul had made a point to dress nicely for his visit. Spending the day with his Stephy was of course considered to be a special occasion and he knew how much she loved him in polo shirts. In fact, every single one including the one he had on, she had bought him when they were married; He wondered if she noticed.

Paul's heart raced as his eyes darted down to her hand as it fixed his shirt. He loved it when she had her hands on him, even if it was just his clothing. It reminded him of when they were married and she used to lovingly fix ruffles out of his clothing or even run her hands through his long hair when it wasn't fixed just so; Simply sensual touches from her that he had taken for granted when she was his.

"Hey Aurora, your daddy's here to visit with you!" Steph hollered aloud, letting her voice echo through the large home while she walked down the hall toward the living room.

Paul was following Stephanie close behind. His eyes couldn't help but wander to her beautiful smooth long legs and her voluptuous rear. She was in black spandex shorts that were like they were molded to her body. It was definitely his favorite view of his ex. His thoughts drifted back many years to when he would goose her with a pinch to her perfect ass while she sat on his lap for a backstage segment. It was how he first let her know he was interested in her. Her laughter and playful punch when their scene was over had shown how much she, in turn, was into him.

If only it were that easy now. Giving into his impulsive desire would mean him running his hand up her leg and caressing the contours of exquisite backside. Of course her reaction to his touch would definitely not be what he wanted. It would most likely be a stiff slap to the face or even worse, her calling off their day together followed by her rescinding the invitation to the weekend birthday party. That birthday party meant more time with his Stephy, something he wasn't going to give up.

"Woah, sorry about that." Paul said with a boyish chuckle after his large muscular frame collided into the back of Steph making her stumble forward only slightly.

Paul had been so preoccupied fantasizing while ogling at his former wife that he didn't notice that she had stopped when she had reached the living room. He was quick to place his hands at her waist line in a false attempt to steady her, even though he knew full well that he didn't bump into her that hard.

"You're fine, Paul. Don't worry about it." Steph replied turning her head around to give Paul a smile as she tapped on his hands with each set of her fingers as an unspoken signal for him to remove them from her waist which he promptly did.

"Yeah, I know I'm fine." Levesque then told her, making his pecs flex from underneath his dress shirt which he was sure she would take notice of.

"Will you just go visit with your daughter? I have to get back to work." Steph said as she tried to stifle her laughter. She had always thought Paul's humor was so quick and witty. It had been one of the reasons she had fallen for him. Of course, he knew this and was able to use his keen sense of humor to play to his advantage.

"Hey Aurora, look who came to visit with you today, it's your daddy!" Steph announced to her daughter in an attempt to garner her attention away from the animated cartoon characters up on the television screen.

The three year old only look away from the screen for a brief moment to see who was standing with her mother before she went right back to watching the cartoon.

"Hey Aurora, what are you watching, sweetheart?" Paul asked walking further into the living room so that he could approach his child.

"It's Max and Ruby." Aurora said aloud as she pointed to the screen, not even taking her eyes off of it.

"Oh wow, are Max and Ruby those two white rabbits?" Paul asked sitting down next to his child on the sofa.

"Yeah, they are the white bunnies. And the gray bunny is their granny." She explained further before she gave her father a quick smile.

Stephanie took their conversation about the Nick Jr. show as her cue to retreat back to the study and resume work on the final draft of the RAW script. Without saying a word, she slipped out of the living room and back to her study.

When Paul looked away from his child, he saw that his ex-wife had left him alone with their daughter. He had hoped that Steph would have at least hung out with them for an hour or so before going back to work. Now here he was with the three year old watching preschool cartoons in Kurt Angle's living room.

"Wanna color wif me?" Aurora offered in a somewhat shy voice as she got from the sofa and knelt down at the coffee table where her coloring book was. She was actually coming out of her shell and directly asking her daddy to play with her.

"Maybe later…" Paul muttered focusing his eyes on a nearby framed picture that was sitting on glass side table next to the sofa. Aurora looked disappointed by her father's rejection as she protruded out her little pink bottom lip before resuming her coloring.

His eyes first concentrated on Stephanie smiling in the picture. He loved her smile, especially the way her nostrils would flare when she'd be beaming with happiness. She had been truly happy with him.

In the picture, her face was a little fat because she had been pregnant with Angle's kid when the picture was taken. Even with the extra baby weight, she was still gorgeous. She was in a two piece bikini and seemed to be somewhere tropical. It would have been a nice picture of her if it wasn't for the fact that Angle was in it as well. There he was behind Stephy with his arms around her, his hands resting on her pregnant belly. He too was dressed for the tropical climate wearing swimming trunks. Kurt had on his smug smirk that would always make Levesque want to smash his face in. The picture was probably taken on their honeymoon. Just looking at it was annoying him, so Paul used his right hand to turn it over so the picture was facing down on the glass table. It was then Levesque realized that by laying that picture down, he had revealed three smaller pictures that were each of Stephanie and Kurt with both Andrew and Aurora.

"How many fucking pictures do they have?" Paul muttered under his breath as he quickly got up from the sofa.

"You not stay and play?" Aurora asked as Paul began to leave the living room. Her question caused him to stop and turn around to face her.

"I'm just going to go see Mommy. I'll be back." He told her before walking out of the living room before the three year old could reply.

Not knowing exactly where the study was, Paul followed the hallway, peeking into each room until he finally came to the right one where the hallway ended. There was Steph typing away on her laptop keyboard, not even blinking as she stared at the screen.

The home study was in a pretty large room having to accommodate for two great wooden desks; one obviously for Stephanie and the other for Kurt. There wasn't much on Angle's desk other than a PC and a few pictures of Steph and the children. Stephanie's however was covered with colored stick notes lined up in a sequential order that only made sense to Steph because of her chicken scratch shorthand.

"Still a work-aholic, huh?" Paul ask leaning up against the doorway of the study as he still eyed his ex-wife.

Hearing his voice caused Stephanie to immediately look up at him. She gave him a quick smile before immediately going back to typing. She was far too busy to stop what she was doing in order to chit-chat with Paul.

"Where's Aurora? The point of you coming over today was to visit with her while I got work done." Steph asked while her fingers stayed in motion moving effortlessly across the laptop keyboard.

"She's coloring and watching her show. And you know this visit wasn't just about me seeing her. This visit was for the both of us to visit with our daughter." Levesque replied while he ventured further into the room to get closer to her.

"You really need to get back into the living room. When she's quiet is when you have to worry. Who knows what she's getting into being left by herself." Steph mentioned completely changing the subject when Paul had pointed out that they should both be spending time with Aurora.

Paul began to walk around the desk to the side where Stephanie was sitting. His eyes focused on her wedding ring that was shimmering as her fingers moved finding the keys. It was quite a large engagement ring that had been joined with a wedding ring making it even more impressive. He was ashamed to say that it was even bigger than the one he had given her when he proposed back in early 2003. Leave it to Angle to make it a point to show him up. Maybe Angle's baby could use that hunk of diamond as a pacifier and choke on it. The last thought made Paul smile as he leaned over and grabbed the back of Stephanie's office chair before leaning in to talk to her.

"I'm giving you a ten seconds countdown to finish up in here…10…9…8…" Paul said as he began to slowly roll the chair away from the desk.

"Paul, will you stop? My God, you are such a child! You used to pull this crap when you wanted me to come to bed with you!" Stephanie hollered letting out a forced laugh as she tried to pull the chair back to where she had it.

"Do you think it will still work?" Paul whispered in a sexy voice that he knew would always turn her on in the past without fail. He then took a deep breath, savoring her smell. She was intoxicating.

Stephanie completely straightened her back as she took her hands away from the laptop keyboard. She could feel a bit of awkward tension in the air especially with her ex leaning in so close to her.

"If you don't move your ass back into the living room to be with your daughter right now, I'm going to roll this chair right over both of your feet." She threatened Levesque with an evil smile. She leaned forward and pretended to be ready to push herself back.

"Okay, okay, Stephy, keep your shirt on." Paul told her as he moved away from her and began to walk out of the study. It was when he reached the doorway that he turned around to have the last word.

"Better yet, go ahead and take it off." He said moving his eyebrows up and down showing his excitement at the thought.

"Get!" Stephanie yelled through laughter as she threw one of her sticky note pads at him causing him to exit the room.

Kurt and Andrew arrived in Pittsburgh later than expected due to some heavy traffic approaching the city. Baby Andrew didn't seem to mind the delay for he was comfortably asleep in his car seat with his pacifier half hanging out of his mouth. To Angle's surprise, he had yet to hear back from Karen. Did she not get his voice mail or was she simply ignoring him? Kurt didn't care what the excuse was. Time was now of the essence and he wanted to spend this extra hour with Kyra and Kody before he had to report to the arena.

Angle decided that he would drive by Karen's house and see if she and the kids were home. Of course he knew where she lived; it was still in the same house that they had built before their marriage had ended. He had given her everything in the divorce settlement after moving out right when the first separated. Thanks to him, Karen was now a millionaire. It didn't bother him though, as long as his two children were taken care of.

The white escalade began to slowly drive down the street of the gated community in which his children lived in. It felt weird driving there since he no longer lived in the posh neighborhood and was simply a visitor who wasn't even invited.

Nothing could have prepared Kurt for what he saw when he pulled up to the home of his ex-wife and children. His jaw dropped as he slammed on his break almost jarring his infant son out of his slumber. It was what he saw staked in the front yard that had taken him aback. A white wooden post held a hanging Pittsburgh realtor sign was moving slightly as a gust of hot summer breeze swept through the front yard.

"What the fuck?" Angle said aloud when he noticed the big red letters in the rectangular sign on top of the post that read "Sold".

He quickly put the SUV in park and climbed out, leaving the engine running. With large strides, he almost ran across the front yard and up to the front door of the house of his two children. He brought his cupped hands up to the glass window that narrow glass windows at the side of the door and used them to help him peer inside. The house was completely empty. The walls were bare, not one piece of furniture was left. Everything was gone; including his two children.


	28. Chapter 28

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Andrew let out a loud and long whine while pulling on his father's shirt. Kurt was pacing around backstage at the Mellon arena in his old hometown of Pittsburgh. Angle's cell phone was to his good ear. His son, Angle had sitting on his hip. The diaper bag and his gym bag were at his feet where he had carelessly dropped it before making the call to his ex. Baby Andy could feel his father's anger and hurt and it was making him fussy.

"Karen, what the hell is going on? I stop by your house today and I see a sold sign in the front yard and the house is empty! Where the hell are my kids? Where do you get the balls to move them somewhere else without telling me first? I'm calling my lawyer because this is bullshit! I expect you to call me back!" Angle screamed in anger before forcefully mashing the end button on his phone.

Kurt was so upset. He didn't know what to do with himself. If he didn't have his obligations to the show, he would have been right on the phone to his lawyer on his way back to Connecticut. There was no possible explanation for Karen to have. What could she say to justify her moving his children without speaking to him first? It was bad enough that he hadn't seen Kyra and Kody in months. He had been laid back and let Karen call the shots when it came to visitation, and now he was paying the price for it.

"Are you okay, Kurt? Vince was asking everyone where you were. You've got a lot of pre-taping to do for the show." Candice Michelle told Angle as she approached. She was already in her skimpy WWE diva attire even though it wasn't even close to show time.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just taking care of some personal stuff. I'm sorry if you heard any of that." Angle explained looking a little embarrassed as he put his cell phone away in his back pocket. Andy was still whining, so Kurt shifted him to his other hip. He wondered how much of the voice message for his ex she had heard.

"Is the little one all right? I take it Mommy didn't come? You look like your cluelessly flying solo tonight with a lot on your mind. Let me take this little one off your hands for the night." Candice offered with a sweet smile as she sashayed over to Kurt and placed a hand on his firm arm.

"Thanks but, I wouldn't want to-"

"I insist, besides what are you going to do with him while you are doing your pre-taped promos and when you are in your match? You know Vince is too busy tonight to watch him. Let me take him. I have a great maternal instinct." She told him with an eyebrow raise as she then held out her arms for his son who was still fussing. She had completely cut him off before he could make up an excuse why not to hand over his baby to one of the divas.

If Stephanie were there, Kurt knew there would be no way Candice would be watching their child during RAW. The mother of two and queen of multitasking would be able to care for her three year old and soon to be one year old while doing her job backstage like it was nothing. Kurt, however, was not that skilled. He had a lot to do to prepare for the show. And if he didn't need more stress, Karen taking his kids was putting his mind in a haze. He really did need help tonight. What would be the harm in letting her watch the baby while he took care of business?

"Okay well, here he is. Everything he'll need is right here in his diaper bag. If anything happens don't hesitate to come and get me. I don't care what it is. Thanks for this." Kurt finally said as he slowly handed her his cranky baby.

"It's my pleasure. It's not every day I have the privilege of taking care of the baby son of the best shooter in the business." Candice replied rocking the baby in her arms instinctively without taking her eyes off of Angle.

Kurt fidgeted a little in place noticing that Candice was really giving him a through look over with her eyes. Her piercing brown eyes scanned him up and down before settling on his lower half. She looked like she was trying to imagine what he was packing underneath his pair of shorts. While he was watching her, he noticed that she caught his gaze. He looked away, avoiding eye contact with the scantily clad diva.

"Yeah, here's the diaper bag. I'm going to go meet up with Vince and get the pre-taping over with. Thanks again." Kurt said quickly picking up the blue diaper bag and handing it to her before leaving the room.

"Say, bye, bye Daddy." Candice told baby Andrew as he just stared at her while Angle walked out. He was taking in her appearance. While she had managed to calm the baby down, he was still a little unsure of the diva. He knew she wasn't his mother.

"You are just the sweetest little one. Are you going to be hanging out with me tonight, Andy? Aw, look at the shy baby!" Candice Michelle gushed as Andrew smiled and then hid his face in her skimpy top.

Stephanie sat silently on her living room sofa as she observed her ex-husband interacting with their daughter. Steph was relieved to have finalized the RAW script for the show that night. She was now free to enjoy little Aurora's time with her father. Stephanie had decided that she would just hang out nearby so the three year old would know she was there. She liked seeing how her little girl interacted with Paul, and the fact that Paul's focus was finally off of her and on his child.

Poor Paul seemed a bit lost when it came to keeping his rambunctious three year old entertained. Aurora really craved stimulation at all times, as Steph knew. Him sitting on the sofa and hoping she would sit still next to him and watch television wasn't going to work. So Steph had the idea to pull out Aurora's new memory card game that featured The Backyardigans. It had been one of the many birthday present from Vince and Linda to their granddaughter. Paul had set it up on the coffee table in the living room. He was on the ground sitting at the table so that he as at the same level as his child while they played.

"Aurora, you can't pick them all up. You are just suppose to show two of the pictures and see if they match." Paul corrected his daughter when he saw her begin to turn over and collect each one of the square cards he had laid out.

"I think she just likes picking up the cards." Steph said aloud with a smile as she watched her little girl bring each one of the cardboard square pictures close to her chest after smiling at the colorful pictures on the one side of each.

"She should learn how to play. This game is for ages three to six. It will be a good skill building activity for her. Give Daddy the cards, sweetheart." Levesque replied reaching over to his daughter in an attempt to remove the cards from her tight grasp.

"No, my cards! Mine! No!" Aurora let out shrieking whine when her father began to pull on the cards.

Stephanie's gut reaction would have been to intervene before her child became more upset than she already was. She decided not to get involved though because it was Paul's time into interact and shoulder the responsibility of being with their three year old. Steph had the three year old everyday and knew full well about the little tantrums that Aurora could throw at the drop of a hat. She was ready to see how her ex-husband would handle it without her input.

"If you are not going to be a big girl and play the game the way it's meant to be played, then it has to go back in the box." Paul explained calmly as if he was speaking to an older child that could comprehend why the game was being put away.

With a hard yank he had snatched the cards from his little girl's hands and began putting them in the box. With her cards out of her hands, Aurora let out a angry scream that caused her face to become a deep shade of red that reminded her mother of Vince. And then, before either of her parents could do anything; she gave her father a good smack on the side of his face with her right hand.

"Aurora, you know we don't hit!" Steph hollered gesturing with a pointed finger at her little girl.

Her eyes were wide with shock as she sat on the couch in disbelief at what had just transpired. It was quite out of the ordinary for Aurora to be hitting adults. She had only hit Steph and had been giving a stern lecture about why putting your hands on people was wrong. If Steph didn't know any better, she would have thought that her daughter had seen her Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley gimmick as was imitating her.

"You do not hit your daddy!" Paul hollered in his deep voice while his cupped hand gave the three year old's little backside a good smack.

The combination of Levesque's loud booming voice and the smack on the bottom caused Aurora to jump before her eyes welled up with tears and she ran over to her mother for comfort. Steph looked on speechless as she took her baby girl into her arms. The way he had just handled his little girl's misbehavior made her want to get up and smack him too.

"That's really great, Paul. You scream at her not to hit and then you hit her. Is this really how you want your little girl to remember her visits with you?" Stephanie lectured her ex-husband while Aurora Rose hid her eyes in her mommy's shirt.

"No, I didn't mean to scare her but I was just shocked that she would hit me. When did she become such a whining little brat?" Levesque asked his former wife touching his hand to his cheek. For a little girl, she already had her mommy's powerful slap.

"I don't think she's feeling well. Her little brother just got over being sick. Did she take a nap at all when I was working the study?" Steph asked trying to come up with a possible explanation for her daughter's acting out. She ignored the fact that Paul had called his own child a brat.

"No, she was busy coloring and watching television. She didn't start acting up until you came in. I'll be right back, I just have to use the bathroom." Paul said quietly as he got to his feet.

"Do you need me to show you where it is?" Steph offered still consoling her baby girl in her arms.

"No, I know my way." He muttered back before leaving the living room.

Steph let out a long sigh while resting her eyes on her little girl. The three year old was still sniffling and crying into her shirt that was now stained with tears. Lovingly, she ran her hand through her little girls brown locks of hair. She could only imagine how awkward these visits were for little Aurora. The poor baby had no memory of when Paul was fully in her life.

"I want my Daddy to come home, Mommy. Where's my Daddy and brother? I want him. Get him." Aurora whispered after lifting her head to expose her tear stained face. Her little hands she placed on her mother's face. She was serious in request for Angle to return.

"Kurt and your bother will be home soon. Right now, we are having a nice visit with your daddy. He loves you very much. Now let's wipe off your beautiful angel face and when Daddy comes back in, we will start fresh." Steph said in an optimistic voice before reaching for a nearby tissue which she used to wipe away her baby girl's tears.

A clean face and a few hugs and kisses were all Aurora needed to go back to her happy state of being. She had gone over to her play corner and picked up both her stuffed puppy dog and teddy bear. Aurora then ran back to sit with her mommy with a stuffed animal in each arm.

"Is there going to be room for me to sit down?" Paul asked walking back into the room with something in his right hand. He noticed that Aurora had sat the stuffed animals in place of where he had planned to sit.

"Say sure, Daddy." Steph said with a smile as she moved some sofa pillows out of the way to open up a spot for Paul to sit next to his child.

"I brought something over to show the two of you." Levesque announced holding up a CD case that had no front booklet. From where Steph sat, she could see that there was some black writing on the disk itself.

"What is it?" Steph asked cocking her head to the side giving him an inquisitive look. She had no idea what he was planning to show them. Where had he even gotten the CD from? Had he gone out to his Hummer?

"You'll see. Can you set up the DVD player to work on the TV?" He asked as he turned and walked up to the entertainment center on the other side of the spacious living room. Steph gave a nod and reached for the universal remote that was sitting on the glass side table.

"What happened over here? One of my pictures was knocked over." Steph mentioned aloud as she sat the picture of her and her husband back up in its place and then grabbed the universal remote.

Paul ignored her as he pressed the eject button on the DVD player causing the tray to open. He then dropped the recordable DVD onto the tray and then closed it. During this, Steph was hitting a few function buttons on her touch remote, setting the television up to play the DVD. With the DVD in the player, Paul took his seat next to his daughter on the sofa and waited for it to load up.

A blue logo screen was followed by the start of a home movie that was promptly dated: Dec 25 2006 in white letters at the bottom right of the screen. Stephanie knew exactly what the DVD was of. She didn't need the recorded date to remind her. It was of their daughter's first Christmas.

"_Merry Christmas Daddy! It's baby Aurora's first Christmas! Look at all the great toys that Santa Clause brought her!"_ A few years younger Stephanie exclaimed in the recording as the camera focused on her and the five month old baby as she sat on the carpet floor in front of their huge Christmas tree.

"_Steph, the Santa hat is covering her eyes."_ Paul told his wife from behind the camera causing Steph to adjust the oversized hat so it uncovered baby Aurora's eyes. She then gave the baby a kiss on her chubby little cheeks causing her to coo.

"That's a baby, Mommy?" Aurora asked turning to her mother before looking back at the image of her baby self on the screen. She was mesmerized by the footage.

"That's you when you were a little baby, sweetie. See, Mommy and Daddy were together. We loved our baby Aurora very much and still do." Steph replied with a smile as she grinned from ear to ear because of how enthralled her daughter was with seeing herself as an infant.

"_Paul, put the camera on the tripod and come sit with us while we open presents."_ Steph said motioning for her husband to come sit with her and their little baby.

Stephanie began to feel her chest tighten as she watched a younger version of herself on her plasma television smiling and giving her baby kisses. This was before it all went wrong. Back when they were a happy couple and a new family. Back then, she would have never believed that what she had with Paul wouldn't last. She had been so blindly devoted to him. He was after all, the first real love of her life. The home movie's purpose was to mark the beginning of their happy married life with children. But now, after everything that she had been through in the past two years, it symbolized the beginning of the end of what she had Paul had together.

"I'm the baby!" Aurora laughed as she got off the couch and walked up to the plasma TV as the video camera zoomed in on the five month old version of her.

"_Give your two best girls some Christmas kisses!"_ Stephanie told Paul the moment he was in the shot sitting down next to her and Aurora.

"_Well I don't see any mistletoe but what the hell?" _Paul said with a laugh before leaning over and giving Steph a quick smooch that she lovingly received after he gave his baby a kiss on her chubby cheek.

Stephanie watched herself kissing her former husband. She could tell how much she had been in love with him. And what wasn't to love then? He had been her best friend and lover. The man she had known she wanted to be married to in the first year they started dating. Nothing could have prepared her for what he had in store for her in the future.

Steph's thoughts were suddenly interrupted as she felt Levesque's hand on her thigh right above her knee. She looked over at him and he smiled. He obviously was feeling nostalgic of old times when he saw them kissing in their home movie. Before Steph could even react to his advances, she was distracted by the conversation that was now taking place in the home movie between them.

"_Do you really have to leave next week for that photo shoot? I don't understand why it was booked so close to the holidays. You should call Dad and see about having it rescheduled."_ The thirty year old asked rocking baby Aurora in her arms.

"_It's the photo shoot for the new year. It's after the holidays and it's not even an hour away. Tell you what,_ _I'll bring you home a nice piece of jewelry from New York's Tiffany. The two days will be over before you know it."_ Paul replied on camera while putting his arm around Steph and giving her a kiss on the side of her face.

"_I don't want a piece of jewelry, Paul. I want you to be with us. We're a family now. Aurora and I should come before a two day photo shoot."_ She replied in a soft voice that was barely audible from the video footage.

"_Steph, come on now. You're on camera nagging me about this. Let's make the holidays nice for Aurora."_

Steph quickly pushed Paul's hand off of her thigh and shot him a look of disgusted. She was finally starting to get fed up with his obvious sexual advances. And now, he was trying to play on her emotions about their failed marriage.

Stephanie felt sick as she watched the conversation transpire. Now, looking back on it all, she knew the exact reason behind that New Years photo shoot in New York. It wasn't until she actually saw that Christmas that she remembered him leaving for the two days at the beginning of the New Year. He had been seeing Michelle North even back then. She had been so blind to it all. Even on camera in their family home movies, Paul was a liar and a cheater.

"Shit, I didn't know that was on there. I didn't watch it all the way through. I'm sorry about that." Paul muttered as he quickly grabbed the universal remote from Steph's relaxed hand and tapped the stop button on its screen that caused the plasma TV to go blue.

"Where did baby go?" Aurora asked pointing to the screen. The family video from her babyhood had disappeared because of her father.


	29. Chapter 29

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Twenty-Nine

"I'm going to call Kurt." Steph announced in somewhat of a matter of fact tone while jumping to her feet. It was almost like she had a coiled spring under her because of how fast she was able to get off the couch.

She couldn't get out of the living room fast enough. Even though Paul had stopped the DVD recording, the tension from the viewing of it was still hanging in the air. The few short minutes of recording had caused Stephanie to think about one of the most difficult times in her life.

Levesque felt like a complete asshole. If only he had watched the home movie before bringing it over to show Stephanie and Aurora, this all could have been avoided. The purpose of showing them the movie was to remind both of them of how happy they had been together. Instead, it had the opposite effect for Steph because it again reminded her of his infidelity.

Now she knew how he felt. Paul was constantly reminded of Stephanie finding "comfort" in Kurt Angle every single time he had to lay eyes on Andrew Vincent Angle. After all, that baby was conceived when Steph was still married to him. She was a cheater too even if she chose not to admit it. And what good what it do for him to point that out to her? It would only piss her off. Levesque wanted to be closer to Steph, not further drive a wedge between them. Proving that he was right and she was wrong would get him no where if he really did want to get her back.

"Hey babe, I'm just checking to make sure you and Andrew got to the arena safely." Stephanie said into her cordless phone the moment her husband answered his cell phone.

"Yeah, we got here fine." He said back quickly. His reply was unusually brief and vague. He had no antidotes about the trip and their arrival that he wanted to share with her.

"Why didn't you call me when you arrived in Pittsburgh? Did you get to see Kyra and Kody?" Steph then asked in a bit of an inquisitive tone of voice. She had expected Angle to check in with her regularly because he was traveling alone with their young child.

"I'm just dealing with some shit right now, Steph. I don't want to talk about it over the phone. We'll talk when I get home tomorrow. I have to go, I'm in the middle of doing pre-tapings."

"Wait, who's watching Andrew while you are doing the pre-tapes? You didn't leave him by himself did you?" She questioned thinking about her youngest child's welfare.

"The baby's fine. Candice Michelle was nice enough to offer to watch him while I did the pre-tapes and during my match tonight."

There was a few second of silence online as Stephanie used the time to have his words register. Did she really hear him correctly? Was Andrew being watch by Candice Michelle? Steph had made it clear to her husband that she didn't feel comfortable with the diva watching their child when the young woman was overtly flirting with her husband.

"Why is he with Candice Michelle? Kurt, didn't I make it clear that I didn't feel comfortable with her watching him? How could you under mind me; especially when I'm not even there with the two of you?" Steph finally asked showing her disappointment in her tone of voice.

"Why are you making such a big deal about her watching him? I didn't want to leave him without someone looking after him when I did the pre-tapes. You know how busy your dad is before and during the show. I didn't think you wanted Andrew at the gorilla position with him. I was just doing what I thought was best, babe. Please don't make a big deal out of it." Angle explained keeping his voice calm despite him sensing that Steph was about to fly off the handle.

"Can you see how this looks from my position? You didn't even call me when you got to Pittsburgh, I had to call you! And when I do call you, I find out that you handed our baby off to Candice Michelle, who is constantly acting like a little bitch in heat anytime you are around her! How does that sound, Kurt? Can you see why I think it is a big deal?" Steph hollered into the phone as she then began to pace around her kitchen.

Stephanie's loud outburst caught her ex-husband's attention. Compelled by his curiosity, Levesque had left the sofa and began listening in on his ex-wife while she talked to Angle. Hearing that the two of them were not having a loving conversation was a relief. He wasn't the only man in Steph's life who was being bitched at. He reveled in the fact that the Olympic ass wipe was being put in his place. The fact that Candice Michelle played a pivotal role in all of it made it all the more interesting. Perhaps now Paul really had something to work with. Hopefully, Steph's anger was now redirected to Kurt instead of him. This was his chance to smooth over his unplanned misstep with the home movie.

"Steph, I can't do this right now. I have way too much on my plate. We can talk about this tomorrow morning when I get home. I'm not going to get into it with you on the phone. I love you, honey, but I have to go now." Angle told his wife after weathering her rant. After the drama he was being forced to endure thanks to his ex-wife, now he was getting shit from Stephy. It was too much at once and he had to end the conversation.

"Fine, goodbye!" Steph sternly snapped back before ending the call and throwing the phone onto the counter top. She hadn't given Kurt the opportunity to say another word. It was clear he was giving her the brush off so that he could go back to work. Obviously, her being upset about Candice was trivial to him.

"Is everything okay?" Paul asked in a hushed voice as he walked into the kitchen. He had decided that it was now the time to make his presence known to her and try his hardest to be sweet and understanding.

"Yeah, it's just some personal stuff, don't worry about it." Steph explained quickly as she moved to the counter to pick up the phone she had tossed so that she could return it to its cradle. She was a bit embarrassed with the thought that her ex-husband had heard or seen her outburst.

"Listen, Steph, I just want to apologize again for what was on that home movie. I had no idea that was going to be on there. I just wanted Aurora to see us as a family. That's the only reason I brought the movie over. I never wanted to hurt you." Levesque replied with his voice filled with sincerity.

He was slowly moving closer to his ex-wife while hoping his honest apology would smooth things over. It was when he was right next to her and she turned to him that he saw there were tears in her eyes. Her argument with Angle had left her emotional and vulnerable and he was ready to comfort her. In one fluid motion, Paul brought his ex-wife into a gentle embrace which to his surprise, she gladly accepted.

"Thank you Paul, I appreciate that. I can tell that your heart was in the right place. And Aurora really loved seeing herself as a baby. We shouldn't focus on the bad things that happened to us as a family in the past. The focus should be on Aurora and the happy times we had with her." She said through a few sniffles. It was obvious Steph was trying to fight back her tears.

As much as Steph didn't want to admit it, the hug from her ex-husband was like an oasis in the middle of a blistering hot desert. Her anger and frustration had quickly subsided the moment she was taken into Paul's arms. It was like she was going back to something very familiar and comforting. She was so grateful that it finally seemed like they were on the same page again for their child. And as if that wasn't enough, he was finally reminding her why she had fallen for him those years ago. It was a relief.

Paul couldn't help but smile. Stephy was back in his arms. It felt like she had never left. Levesque hugged her the way he used to when they were together, caressing her back gently with his strong hands. Her perfume and the smell of her hair was even the same. God he missed being with her. With her hugging him back, Paul felt like he had a purpose again; he was meant to be with her.

"Let's go spend time with our little girl. She deserves to see us getting along while we both play with her." Steph told him after being the first to let go of their embrace. Her stressed demeanor had been replaced with a hopeful and optimistic one.

Levesque smiled and gave a nod following her back into the living room. Her words were like music to his ears. He loved the fact that Stephanie was seeing how important it was for the two of them to be together for their child. She was finally putting him and Aurora first and letting Kurt Angle and the new baby fall to the wayside.

"Look, see Daddy? See him on the TV? Daddy looks so cute in his wrestling gear." Candice said with a laugh. She was trying to point out Andrew's father to him on the television monitor that was streaming the matches in real time. Andrew couldn't care less about seeing his father walking to the ring; he too busy whining to be put down.

"I don't think he cares about watching his dad. He wants you to put him down." Maria Kanellis pointed out while she and the rest of the divas stood by backstage.

All the divas had been keeping an eye on Candice Michelle while she watched Kurt and Stephanie's baby. There had been whispering amongst them. Everyone was trying to figure out why Andrew had been put into her care while Stephanie McMahon-Angle wasn't even at the show.

"I'm not putting him down on the concrete floor. I'm like his substitute mommy for the night. What kind of mother would put her baby on the dirty floor?" Candice replied back as she began to sway back and forth in an attempt to calm the baby down.

The nearby RAW divas exchanged looks at each other in response to hearing Candice refer to herself as Andrew's substitute mother. No one said anything aloud but each and every one of them was thinking about what the repercussions would be if Stephanie could see what was going on.

"Well then let me have him. He's probably tired of being carried around by you." Maria stated holding her arms out so she could accept the baby.

"I'm not giving him to you. Kurt wanted me to care for his son while he wrestled tonight. He didn't ask you. He only trusts me with his baby boy. Don't be jealous all of you." Candice laughed as she pointed at Maria and then all of her fellow divas. She then left the locker room with Andy who was still fussing.

"Did anyone get that shit on tape to send to Stephanie?" Maria asked the other girls. She then pulled out her cell phone and began to text out the latest piece of gossip.

"Hey Maria, text this: Either Kurt Angle's screwing around with her or she's talking out of her ass. We're more inclined to believe the latter." Melina dictated aloud causing all of the other ladies to burst out laughing.

The main event tag match had gotten underway. The office had booked Kurt and Jack Swagger to team up against Kofi Kingston and the WWE champion, Chris Jericho. Swagger seemed to be a bit nervous about pulling off the match because Kurt had barely talked to him about it before hand. With how he was feeling, Kurt didn't want to have to walk Swagger through each spot he needed to do. He simply told the kid to follow the loosely developed script of what needed to happen and simply improvise the rest of the match.

Like always during stressful times in his life, Angle was able to give his usual 110% in the ring while making his opponents look strong against him. He knew how to turn it on when he needed to and tonight was no exception. He hit all of his usual moves, the three German suplexes, the Angle Slam that was reversed, and even the quick fake out Angle slam from the top rope. When he tagged Swagger in and he was standing on the apron in his corner, he allowed himself to take his head out of the game. His thoughts were focused on not just Kyra and Kody but also the argument he had with Stephanie earlier in the day.

Jack Swagger kept hitting textbook suplexes and belly to belly throws on Kofi Kingston. Each time he would hit a technical move, he would turn and look to see Angle's reaction to his athleticism. Kurt wasn't even looking in his direction. Noticing this caused Swagger to look on with disappointment while Kofi did his job selling Jack's suplexes as he stiffened his body on the canvas. Jack then flashed a quick taunt causing the crowd to boo him intensely. He was playing his role of heel perfectly. As the crowd began to chant "You suck!" chants at him, Swagger grabbed Kofi by his black braids and began to set up the gutwrench powerbomb spot. This was Angle's cue to run into the ring and attack Jericho, knocking him to the outside off the ring apron.

Kurt ran at Jericho and gave him a shot that knocked him off the apron and into the announcer table. Angle too then got out of the ring. As Swagger began to lift Kofi over head to hit the powerbomb, Kingston began to punch Jack's head before he did a back flip back onto his feet and then a hard kick to Swagger's face. The RAW crowd popped for Kofi Kingston as he began to dance around the ring.

Meanwhile on the outside, Angle and Jericho were fighting back and forth up the ramp. It was obvious to the fans that the match was going to end with Kingston and Swagger. Still, the cameras followed Kurt and Chris to the RAW stage where Jericho attempted to suplex him. Angle blocked, wrapping his leg around Jericho's so that Chris couldn't lift him off the stage, and then Kurt followed up with a suplex of his own. Jericho yelled out in pain as his back smacked into the hard metal stage.

In the ring, Kofi looked like he was thinking about going for a double leg drop to finish off the match. He sized up Swagger who was still prone on his back, and then turned to run to the ropes. Before Kingston could even reach the ropes, Jack Swagger sprung into action grabbing the ankle of Kofi with both hands. This maneuver, that seemed to come out of nowhere, caused Kingston to trip and fall onto the mat and allowed Swagger to get to his feet and snap on the ankle lock. Kofi Kingston began to scream in pain while Jack smiled and torque his ankle while dragging him to the center of the ring. The crowd was looking on in confusion. They didn't know what to make of Kurt Angle's tag partner using Angle's signature submission move.

"That's right, tap! Tap!" Swagger hollered the moment Kofi gave up and began slamming his hand down on the canvas repeatedly.

"What the fuck?" Kurt muttered under his breath. He was standing on the stage with both of his hands on his hips looking on in disbelief. Did Swagger just finish the match with his ankle lock? Angle's eyes narrowed as he watched Swagger celebrate the victory while Swagger's "Get On Your Knees" theme blared throughout the arena and the Lillian Garcia announced both of them the winner.

"Dad, did you see that? What the hell was that? Did you tell him to do that?" Angle asked his father-in-law the moment he walked back behind the curtain to the gorilla position. Kurt was so pissed off that he didn't even wait until Swagger left the ring before going to the back.

"I didn't tell him to do that. I thought you were working with him and it was your idea. The script only specified that he would get the win over Kingston." Vince explained calmly. He could see that his son-in-law was really upset.

"I would never tell him to try and be a blatant copy of me! I'm trying to help him build his own character!" Angle hollered back pointing toward the curtain that lead to the stage.

"Okay, okay, calm down. We'll talk to him about it. It's not a big deal." Vince said taking off his headset before getting up from the table to try and console Angle.

"Did I tell you to fucking do that? Huh? What, you think you're Kurt Angle now? Are you going to start sleeping with my wife too?" Angle snapped the moment Swagger came backstage through the curtain. Vince had to get in front of his son-in-law to keep him from getting physical with the younger wrestler.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Angle! I swear I didn't mean anything by it! I was just trying to make you proud of me! I did it in honor of you!" Swagger quickly apologized taking a few steps back. He was wide eyed and somewhat fearful of the man he idolized.

"Get a hold of yourself! Damn it Angle, what the hell is wrong with you? Something's wrong, I can tell!" Vince yelled. His words caused Kurt to take a few steps back and take a few deep breaths. He was regaining control of himself.

McMahon's eyes stayed focused on Kurt. He could see tears beginning to form in Angle's eyes. Something really was bothering him. The moment Kurt knew Vince had seen him become emotional he turned around and started to walk to the metal stairs that connected the gorilla position with the backstage part of the arena.

"You just make sure everything gets wrapped up. I'm going to find out what's wrong with him." Vince told one of his cronies as he left the spot where he would always be during the entirety of every show. McMahon's biggest fear was that Angle and his daughter were having marital problems. Whatever was bothering his son-in-law, it seemed to be of a personal nature.

Jack Swagger shook his head and muttered a curse word. He felt like shit knowing his plan to impress Kurt Angle had backfired. The last thing the young man wanted to do was upset Kurt. Judging by how angry Angle was, this would be the end of his tutelage.

"Good night house and goodnight mouse. Goodnight comb and goodnight brush. Goodnight nobody, good night mush. And goodnight to the old lady whispering 'hush, hush'." Paul read to his little girl in a soft whisper from one of her favorite bedtime books, "Good Night Moon" by Margret Wise Brown.

Stephanie was standing in the doorway to Aurora's room watching her ex-husband tuck their daughter in for bed. It was definitely way past their child's bedtime. Paul had been so playful with his little girl that Steph had not had the heart to send her to bed at her normal time. The three year old's eyes were now getting heavy as things were winding down.

"Mommy! I want Mommy!" Aurora whined as if something had snapped her out of her drowsiness. She was interrupting her father before he could finish the final few pages of the book.

"Hey, no, where do you think you're going? Stay in bed, it's night-night time." Levesque explained to his little girl while stopping her from getting out of her big girl bed. He noticed that Aurora's face was turning red right before his very eyes. Was she about to have another melt down?

The moment Stephanie stepped forward to voice her concern, Aurora's mouth opened and vomit came spewing out of it all over her father's shirt, her own pajamas, and her bed. After she threw up, Aurora began to wail while reaching for her mother to comfort her. Paul looked down at his shirt in disgust. The vomit was warm and smelled terrible. It was so bad that for a moment, Levesque thought he was going to get sick.

"Oh sweetheart, are you sick? Come here, let's get you cleaned up." Steph softly said, her voice filled with concern as she lifted her little girl out of the bed and into her arms. She then walked out of the room leaving Paul still sitting on the bed.

"All over my fucking shirt..." Paul muttered in a grumpy mumble as he threw the children's book onto the floor. Slowly, he got to his feet and went to find where Steph had taken their sick child.

"Hot! It hot! Mommy, ouch!" Aurora cried out the moment Stephanie sat her down into the bathtub that was being filled with lukewarm water.

"No baby, it's not really hot, you're starting to run a fever. It's going to be okay, sweetie. Mommy's here." Steph replied quickly as she got down on her knees next to the tube. With her right hand, she turned the faucet a tiny bit to the left, just to make sure her daughter would be comfortable with the temperature.

"Steph, a little help here would be nice. This shirt is ruined. There's puke all over it. I can't even take it off." Paul told Stephanie the moment he entered the bathroom where she was tending to their sick daughter.

"Can you please hand me that clean washcloth by you on the towel rack?" Steph asked completely ignoring his comments about his polo shirt.

Levesque let out a sigh and grabbed the wash cloth she had requested and tossed it to her. When he did this, he caught sight of himself in the mirror. He really looked like a sight with vomit all up the front of his shirt. Thanks to his daughter, the polo his former wife had bought him was probably going to have to be thrown away.

"Is she going to be okay? She didn't seem sick when he took her upstairs for bed. Now she is puking and has a fever?" Paul asked as he got closer to where Steph was starting to gently wash the crying three year old with the wash cloth.

"I think she got a mutation of whatever her brother had. Andrew wasn't vomiting but he had a high fever. I'm going to take her to the doctor tomorrow. I'm sorry about your polo shirt. If you want, you can borrow one of Kurt's shirts to go home in." Steph offered.

So this was how his visit with his little girl was going to end? Aurora puking all over the front of his shirt complements of Angle's sickly baby. Levesque didn't want the visit to be over. How many more chances would he have to be alone with Steph and Aurora without Angle and his baby there to horn in? The answer was none.

"I don't really care about the shirt. I mean, it's really reeking right now." Paul said with a chuckle as he waved his hand in front of his face to illustrate the terrible odor coming from the polo.

"Here, let me help you out of it. Put your arms up." Steph instructed before she got up and went over to him. With one quick motion she lifted his shirt up over his head and exposed his large muscular torso. The moment he was shirtless in front of her, he tensed his muscles, trying to make his abs even more defined in the hopes she would notice.

"I can wash this for you if you want. When I'm done taking care of Aurora, I'll get you a clean one to put on. I'm sorry all this happened during your visit."

"It's no problem, really. I'm worried about our baby girl. I don't want to leave her tonight. I don't know if it would be too forward to ask if I could just stay in one of the guest rooms. I just want to have the comfort knowing my sick baby is right down the hall from me."

Stephanie bit her bottom lip as she began to ponder the idea Levesque had suggested to her. He wanted to stay over in her and Kurt's house while Kurt was away for the night. Steph knew that there would be no way her husband would approve of it. After all, it did sound a little screwy: the ex-husband spending the night at his ex-wife's house while her new husband is away on business. Then again, Kurt had decided to go against her by letting Candice Michelle watch their son even after she told him not to. Besides, Paul's interests were strictly focused on Aurora. He was trying to be a good daddy, and for that, she shouldn't punish him.

"Okay, you can stay in one of the guest rooms for the night; just so you can be here for Aurora."


	30. Chapter 30

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty

Stephanie had assigned Paul to the guest room all the way at the end of the hall. It was clearly the farthest room from her master bedroom. But at the same time, it was only a few rooms away from their three year old daughter's room. Why did that matter though? Steph had decided that she would let her sick child sleep with her; a lot that did for Levesque. He had been assigned to watching their daughter while Steph cleaned up the vomit mess. It wasn't until Aurora was asleep that he was relieved of his duties and was free to take a shower.

It was a bit awkward taking a shower in Kurt Angle's house despite the fact that the shower he was using was first class completely with multiple water jets. And to think it wasn't even their master bathroom he was using. Levesque was still happy to take a long shower at Angle's expense. This was especially true after his daughter had vomited down the front of him. He needed to clean up. The only thing that would make it better was if Steph joined him. The marvelous hot jets of water rinsing over his body would be nothing to being inside of her again. He couldn't even remember the last time he had showered with her.

It would be a waste of water waiting for her to join him though. After he had washed himself from head to toe, Levesque shut the water off. With both of his large hands, he squeezed out the excess water from his dirty blonde locks. Paul then opened the shower door and reached for a nearby towel. He took only a moment to attempt to dry himself off before wrapping the towel around his waist. With his body still wet, he walked from the bath room into the dark hallway to the guest room he was told to occupy.

Paul didn't even bother putting a light on as he entered the dark guest room, closing the door behind him, and plopped down on the king size bed that had already been turned down. He closed his eyes for a moment, taking in the cool breeze of the ceiling fan that felt great after the hot shower. The unexpected sound of a knock on the bedroom door caused Levesque to open his eyes in the darkness and get up from the bed. With a flick of a wall switch, he illuminated the bedroom. With light in the room, Paul easily found the door handle used it to open the door just enough to expose his face.

"Sorry, I didn't wake you, did I?" Steph whispered from the dark hallway.

"No, you're fine. I just got out of the shower." Levesque replied as he opened the door a bit wider to allow his ex-wife to see his still glistening hard body from where she stood.

Opening the door more allowed the light from the room to make Stephanie more visible. She was wearing her white cloth robe that was tightly tied in the front. Paul's eyes were scanning her from bottom to top. When he looked at her face, he noticed that she was checking him out too. Perhaps she really did notice his damp muscular frame.

"I just wanted to give you this shirt for tomorrow. It should fit you. I figured you would be leaving early in the morning." Stephanie explained before holding out a folded light yellow cotton short sleeved shirt for him to take.

"Ah, I'm still pretty wet. Could you just come in and put it on top of the dresser?" He requested moving away from the opening of the door to allow her to enter the guest room.

Steph flashed a smile before she entered the room. She went right over to the dresser and gently placed the folded shirt on top of the wooden dresser. While her attention was diverted, Paul quietly closed the door to the bedroom.

"Why did you just close the door?" She asked taking notice the second she heard it close.

"I wanted to talk to you. Steph, I can't take it anymore. I'm still in love with you. I've never stopped loving you. You don't know how hard it is to have to visit our baby girl and see you happy with that asshole Angle." Paul blurted out in what sounded like one long run-on sentence.

"Paul, why are you saying that? What about Torrie? She's such a great person and-"

"I don't love Torrie; not like I love you. I know there's still a connection between us. Every time I look into your eyes, I see it. I tried to make it go away and fill the void with dating Torrie but it isn't working. You're in my heart and soul." Levesque professed cutting his ex-wife completely off before she could question him fully.

Stephanie's eyes were wide with shock. Her moistened lips parted slightly as she looked him in the eyes like she couldn't believe what had just come out of his mouth. Paul couldn't believe he was saying it either. It was such a relief to profess his love directly to Steph. It was like the flood gates had broken after a year of stifling and holding it all in.

"I don't know what to say…" She said in a softly while using her left thumb to wiggle her large diamond ring on her finger that symbolized her commitment to Angle.

"You don't have to say anything." Levesque whispered back as he slowly began to close the space between them.

Steph raised her eyebrows slightly as she simply watched her former husband get closer and closer to her. Levesque had finished expressing his feelings for her in words. Now it was time for him to show her how much he missed her. Ever so gently, he brought his right hand to her face, lifting her chin with his fingertips so she could look into his eyes as he stood in close proximity right in front of her. She didn't move away from his touch. She stood there like she was frozen, her icy blue eyes staring deep into his hazel eyes that were focused back on her.

Levesque's left hand rose from his side. It gently swept a long lock of her hair away from her face before it rested on her right cheek. After a few seconds, Stephanie finally made a movement, bringing her hand to Paul's left arm. At first, he thought that she was going to remove his hand from her. It wasn't the first time she had rejected him in the past year. What she did, however, caused a smile to form on Levesque face. Her hand began to caress his arm and then, she smiled back at him.

Stephanie returning a smile was all the encouragement Paul needed to move in for a kiss; the kiss that he had been so desperately wanting from her ever since she had left him for Angle over a year ago. He slightly cocked his head to the side before quickly closing the remaining space between their bodies and most importantly to him, their lips. He let out a long sigh of relief the moment he felt her soft lips on his. He was like a parched man who had been roaming a dry and sparse desert before being found and given his first drink of water.

A few muffled sounds came from Stephanie the moment after Paul had put her into a lip lock. It sounded like she was trying to say his name, possibly to try and reason with him that what he was doing wasn't a good idea or was wrong. Levesque didn't want to listen to any of it. Nothing that felt this good could be wrong. The two of them together was so right. He was relishing her taste as his tongue began to freely explore her mouth with surprisingly little to no resistance from Steph. He knew exactly how she liked to be kissed. She couldn't help but love his tried and true technique. Levesque was willing to bet that Angle never kissed her with such intensity. He ignored her weak protests and continued to kiss her with the passion that only he could. After only a few seconds later, she let out a sigh and began to kiss him back. She ran a hand once through his long wet hair as the kiss intensified. Levesque then felt himself harden immediately the moment Steph's hands began to loosen the towel from around his waist. Her tugging on the towel caused it to fall to the floor exposing Paul's naked lower half.

Stephanie obviously wanted to take it a step further and Paul was happy to follow her lead. He brought his hands to the robe tie and quickly undid it. With the robe open, he then placed a hand on either side of the opening of the robe and pulled it further open. Before he could slip the robe off her, she gave him a hard shove, causing him to fall back on the bed. He let out playful laugh, tilting his head up to see her give him a naughty smile as she did the honors in removing her garment. Just like the towel, it fell to the floor and allowed Paul to cast his eyes upon her naked body. God, she was just as sexy as he remembered. Her body was amazing for being a mother of two children.

"I want you so bad…" Paul hissed in a frustrated and horny voice as he motioned her to climb on the bed with him so that he could make love to her like he should have been doing during the past year.

Steph licked her lips before she crawled onto the bed and over to where Paul was still laying. The moment she was on top of him, he quickly flipped her over onto her back. Levesque was ready to take charge and take what was his. Not wanting to waste any time, he quickly positioned himself between her legs and with one strong thrust, he was in heaven. Stephanie gasped as she wrapped her legs around his torso while he pushed as much of himself as he could inside of her. He was savoring the moment as much as he could. Before he could resume thrusting, Steph made him roll over so that she could take charge. Levesque smiled gazing up at his Stephy with her hair all around her face. She smiled at him as they began to make love again. He closed his eyes, and enjoyed the pleasure that came with his former wife riding him.

"What the fuck?" Paul said aloud the moment he opened his eyes.

Stephanie was gone and he was staring up into the darkness. Where was she? He quickly sat up and noticed that the towel, that was pitching a tent, was draped freely over his lower half. While the towel was still wet from the shower, his body had been dried off from the ceiling fan hanging above him. Quickly, Paul got off the bed and stumbled toward the door, his hand moved along the wall as he tried to find the light switch. When he found it and flicked on the light, he squinted. His eyes took a few seconds to adjust to the light before he was able to examine the room. Her robe was gone and the bed's thin sheets were still somewhat folded under where he had been laying.

"Wait a minute…" Levesque whispered after he noticed the folded shirt on top of the dresser.

The short sleeved shirt was exactly where Stephanie had put it. She had been in his room that meant. He couldn't have dreamt it. It had been so real. He had tasted her kiss and been inside of her. Steph had brought him the shirt that was still sitting there on the dresser. But where was she now?

Quietly but quickly, Paul let his guest room and began to walk down the hallway toward the master bedroom. The hallway seemed never ending in the darkness but finally he reached the double door entrance to Stephanie's master bedroom. Levesque reached out his hand in the darkness for one of the handles. The moment he felt one in his grasp, he pushed down on it. It didn't budge. The doors were locked.


	31. Chapter 31

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-One

Paul barely managed to get any sleep after his surreal dream; if it really was a dream. It had been so real. He had felt her smooth skin under his touch, tasted her sweet kisses, and even felt the warm of her body against his. If it was all just a figment of his imagination, then how could it be so vivid? And how did the shirt get in the guest room? These questions were still plaguing Levesque the next morning when he entered the kitchen fully dressed.

"Hey good morning, oh good, you found the shirt I left for you in the guest room. I put on the dresser while you were getting a shower. Did you sleep okay?" Stephanie asked with a smile when she saw him enter the spacious kitchen wearing Kurt's light yellow shirt.

Paul's heart sank the moment Stephanie revealed to him how Angle's shirt ended up in the guest room. He really did dream everything that had transpired between them. The reality of the night before was that he had slept clear on the other side of the house while his little girl and the woman he loved slept behind locked doors away from him. They felt so out of reach even though he had spent the entire day with them yesterday.

A part of him wanted to express his feelings to her right then and there just like he had done in the dream. He wasn't going to though. This was because he knew that her reaction would not be the same as it was in his dream. She would reject him, and speak of her marriage and his fuck ups that caused the dissolving of their marriage. Why should he put his feelings for her out there if she was only going to throw them back in his face? Simply expressing his desire to be with her and retain his spot in the company was useless. He had a better chance to knock Kurt Angle off the pedestal Steph had placed him on as husband of the year. The guy wasn't perfect and he had his vices just like every man. Hopefully exploiting Angle's short comings would help Steph realize her mistake in marrying him in the first place.

Paul had been so focused about the thoughts in his head that he was now just noticing the absence of his child.

"Where's Aurora?" Levesque inquired. He was answering his ex-wife's question with a question. Levesque didn't want to even attempt to tell her about last night. This thoughts and feelings were better left being kept to himself.

"She's still in my bed asleep. I'm hoping the worst of the sickness is over and that she's just sleeping it off now. If she's still sick today, I'm taking her to the doctor." Steph replied as she poured herself a cup of coffee.

"Would you like some coffee?" She then asked him after noticing him watching her fixing herself some.

"No, I should be going. I've got to go home and get ready to leave for the SmackDown tapings today."

"Don't you want to say goodbye to your daughter?" Stephanie asked the moment she saw her ex-husband beginning to walk away like he was getting ready to leave. She looked to be taken aback by the fact that he was ready to leave without even saying goodbye to his sick child.

"I don't want to wake her up. Like you said, she needs her sleep. I'll see her this weekend at the birthday party. It's at your parents' beach house, right?"

"Yeah it's on Saturday at noon. Did you call Torrie and make sure she is able to come with you?" Steph then asked to remind him of the fact that he was only invited to Andrew's first birthday party if he was bringing his girlfriend.

"No, I haven't talked to her. I'll ask her today when I see her at the SmackDown tapings." Levesque muttered back. After the great day they had with Aurora yesterday, he was hoping she would finally allow him to be at the party without Torrie's presence; so much for that.

"Well have a safe flight. I hope to see you and Torrie at the party."Stephanie told her former husband before she escorted Paul to the front door of her large home.

Steph had to admit, she was glad her ex-husband was leaving her house early. She knew Kurt was most likely already on his way home with their son. She knew he wasn't going to take it well when she divulged to him the fact that Paul spent the night in their home while he was away. If he had to find out about the sleep over while Levesque was still at the house, there was bound to be fireworks.

"See you at the party, Steph. You better go drink your coffee. You don't want it to get cold." Levesque replied back pointing back toward the kitchen where she had left her cup of coffee.

Steph gave a quick laugh with a nod. She then waved goodbye to him after he walked out of the house. Paul didn't expect her to walk him to his Hummer that was parked in the nearby driveway. Her walking him to the door was the extent of the hospitality that she was willing to show to him.

It was just as well. Paul had someone else on his mind for the day; that woman was Torrie Wilson. She was his ticket to the McMahon-Angle party. Without her presence, there would be no way Steph could justify him being there to her family and worst of all, Angle. She wasn't the only one who was going to have some explaining to do. Paul still didn't know exactly what he was going to say to Torrie to convince her to go with him. The last time he saw her, she had left his home in a huff calling him an asshole. She had seen right through him and his intentions were clear. Still, there had to be a way. Levesque was determined to gain leverage in the situation, where ever he could find it.

Kurt and baby Andrew arrived home late in the morning. With everything that had transpired the day before, Angle had barely gotten any sleep at the hotel in Pittsburgh. Andy seemed to be agitated during the night perhaps because of the absence of his mother. And Angle couldn't stop thinking about where his ex-wife had taken his children.

When Vince had pulled him aside after RAW the night before, McMahon had advised him to contact his lawyer immediately and then followed his advice up with a hug. His father-in-law seemed to be quiet relieved to find out that Angle's troubles had nothing to do with his marriage to Stephanie. Still he couldn't act on Vince's suggestion, at least not immediately. There was no way he could call his lawyer that late at night. Besides, after all the shit Karen pulled, part of him wanted to resolve their custody problems without involving lawyers and law enforcement. He had to think about his children and what was in their best interest. What stress would all that drama put on Kyra and Kody?

"Hi my sweet angel, I missed you so much!" Stephanie gushed before greeting her husband and baby the moment they entered the kitchen through the laundry room.

Andrew immediately perked up at the sight of his mother. Kurt gave her a weak smile before allowing his wife to take their son from his arms and into hers. With her baby in her arms, Steph then began to shower him with kisses while he smiled and cooed.

Angle couldn't help but notice that not one of his wife kisses was for him. In fact, since had entered the kitchen, Steph hadn't even acknowledged his presence. Their son seemed to be the only one she was happy to see returning to her safely. She was obviously still upset about their fight on the phone yesterday.

"Where's Princess Aurora? At least I know she'll be happy to see me." Kurt asked aloud taking notice that the three year old was not in the kitchen. His voice sounded a bit hoarse like he was getting choked up. After all he had been through in Pennsylvania, he would have least liked to be welcomed home by his wife with a nice kiss and hug.

"She's on the sofa in the living room. She got sick last night but I think she's starting to feel better. She was sleeping a lot this morning so I think that means her body is fighting off the sickness."

"Shit, really? Why didn't you call me?" Kurt answered back quickly. His eyes had widened when he heard that his little stepdaughter was under the weather. He began to walk toward the living room.

"I didn't think I needed to call you. Her father was here. Besides, I figured you were too busy hanging out with Candice Michelle after the show." Steph replied in a bitchy tone raising an eyebrow while she following after her husband with her baby son on her hip.

"Are you feeling okay, little girl?" Angle whispered in a soft caring voice after taking a seat down next to where Aurora was sitting with a light blanket on. He had chosen to completely ignore Stephanie's smart ass comment about Candice Michelle. The last thing he needed now was a fight with his wife.

"My tummy hurted but teddy, doggie, and kitty cat made it better." Aurora answered back with a smile on her face. She pointed at each of her stuffed animals that were sitting on the other side of her on the sofa.

"Well I'm glad you are feeling better." Kurt then told his stepdaughter before giving her a kiss on the cheek and then took her into his arms for a hug.

Angle couldn't help but think about his little boy and girl, Kody and Kyra. He missed being able to see them whenever he wanted; to be able to hug them and play with them. He was willing to admit that after he moved to Connecticut with Stephanie, he was able to see them even less than when he still lived in Pittsburgh. But he wasn't the only one at fault. Karen had made it very difficult for him to see his two children. There were several occasions where he was going to take a short jet flight to Pennsylvania to pick them up but it was somehow never convenient for Karen.

Now he had no idea where Kyra and Kody were. They had obviously been moved from their home in Pittsburgh. What was Karen's agenda? Where was she moving them to? Did his children think that he didn't care about them? Angle wanted to cry at the thought of his little Kyra thinking that he had moved on and started a new family that didn't include her and her brother. That was the farthest thing from the truth. Kurt would love it if he could have all of his three children with him at all times. Unfortunately, an ugly divorce made that impossible and Kody and Kyra were the ones suffering because of it, just like him.

"Kurt, she wants you to let her go. How long of a hug do you want to give her?"

Stephanie's words caused Kurt to finally come back to reality and push away his sad thoughts about his children. He hadn't even realized that Aurora was trying to wiggle out of the prolonged hug that he was giving her. The three year old liked giving hugs, but not ones that lasted for minutes.

"I'm sorry. I'm just dealing with a lot." Kurt muttered back after he broke his embrace and starred over to the plasma flat screen that was currently displaying cartoons. Stephanie gave him a look of confusion. She wondered what he could possibly be "dealing with" that had him acting so odd.

As he studied his entertainment center, he narrowed his eyes noticing a CD case that he didn't recognize. While Steph placed Andrew down on the carpet floor to play, Angle got up from the sofa and ventured over to the DVD player where the mysterious case was sitting on top of it.

"What's this?" Kurt asked aloud to Steph when he turned around to show the writable DVD case.

"Oh, Paul brought some home movies over so Aurora could see herself as a baby. I guess he forgot it when he left this morning." Stephanie replied. The very second after she said "this morning" she knew she had just opened the proverbial can of worms wide open.

"What do you mean this morning?" Angle asked while his eyebrows furrowed. He thought maybe he had misunderstood what his wife had said.

"Paul spent the night in one of our guest rooms. He was worried about Aurora being sick. She threw up on his shirt at bedtime. I let him borrow one of your shirts and he left early this morning." Stephanie explained revealing all the details about the night before.

"You let him spend the night with you while I was gone? He slept in my house and you gave him my clothes to wear? What else did he have that is mine?" Angle asked. His voice was full of anger as he looked on his wife with suspicion and disgust.

It was hard enough on Kurt having to deal with thoughts of his missing children. Now because of his wife, he was having wild and jealous thoughts of her possible infidelity with her ex-husband, Paul Levesque.

Angle's abrupt outburst caused both Aurora and Andrew, who were now sitting together in the play corner of the living room, to look up at both adults. Their little eyes were full of innocent worry as both of them had no idea why Kurt was hollering.

"Let's go into another room to discuss this." Steph muttered through her gritted teeth before motioning for him to follow her out of the living room.

With Stephanie leading the way, the Angles briskly walked to the other side of their home and into their study. It was when they entered the room that Steph closed the door behind them. They wanted to be free to argue without worrying about the children hearing them and being frightened.

"Nothing happened between Paul and me at all last night! I had him use the guest room that was farthest away from our master bedroom where Aurora and I slept behind locked doors! Besides, you have no room to talk! You handed our baby son over to Candice Michelle after I remember specifically telling you that I didn't want her around either of my children! All she does is flirt with you like a cat in heat! If I didn't know any better I would think she was being encouraged!" Steph screamed at Angle putting her finger right in his face.

"I don't give a shit about Candice Michelle! She was the very last thing on my mind yesterday! I let her watch Andrew because she offered and the baby would be one less thing I had to worry about!"

"You keep hinting that something happened but you won't tell me! I'm your wife, Kurt! If something is happening to you then it's happening to me too! Now tell me! What is it?" Stephanie yelled back as tears began to form in her eyes.

Stephanie was so frustrated with her husband. Ever since his phone call yesterday she had an inkling that something was bothering him. Why didn't he just tell her what it was? Was she the only one he was keeping in the dark about what was bothering him?

"Karen took my kids!" Kurt yelled back. He was finally letting his wife in on what had been eating at him since yesterday. It even pained him to say it aloud.

"Wait, what do you mean she took them?" Steph asked back quickly. Her voice was now calm as she quickly began to realize that her husband was really torn up about something to do with his children.

Angle went to answer her but immediately had to stifle himself when his emotions over took him. A single tear escaped from each of his light blue eyes. The two streams began to slowly cascade down his cheek before he wiped them away with his hands.

"Tell me what happened, baby." Steph breathed in a hushed voice.

She closed the space between herself and her husband. Her right hand she brought to the left side of his face and used her thumb to wipe away another tear the moment it fell from his eye. She hated seeing him this upset especially when she knew it was something his ex-wife, Karen, had caused.

"I went to see Kyra and Kody at their house as soon as I got to Pittsburgh. When I got there, I saw a for sale sign in the front yard. I got out of the car and looked inside the house. It was empty." Kurt muttered through his tears.

"She just moved them without telling you first? That bitch, did you try calling her?"

"Yeah, I called and left a voice mail yesterday when I got to the arena. Then I tried calling again this morning and it said the number was no longer in service. She took my babies and I have no idea where they are." Angle added in a hoarse voice as he moved away from his wife and slumped down in his office chair. His head fell in his hands and he continued to weep.

"We need to call Mike Santicola. This goes beyond you trying to reason with Karen. Now the lawyers need to get involved. We'll find out where she's taken the kids. Everything is going to be fine." Stephanie assured him. She walked over to where he sat and began to rub his back, showing her support.

"Who knows what Karen is saying to the kids about me…They are probably wondering why Daddy hasn't visited them…" Kurt cried.

"I'm sure they know that you love them. Karen's just a cold hearted bitch and she needs to be held accountable. Just make the call the Santicola and your other lawyers if needed. That's their job."

"I hate getting lawyers involved. It reminds me of that DUI charge that woman tried to pin on me. And now a custody dispute, I don't know if I can go through all this again."

"Kurt, you have to, for Kyra and Kody. I'll be right here with you." Stephanie assured moving in front of him between where he sat and the office desk.

"I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have you with me, Stephy." Angle mumbled through his sniffles of congestion. With both hands, he grabbed hold of her and pulled her into his lap. His head he buried in her bosom as he held her close.

"I'm not going anywhere." Steph then whispered into his good ear like she was telling him a secret while hugging him tightly. She felt a little awkward straddling him in his study chair nice it wasn't the most comfortable position to be in; but it didn't bother her, she was comforting her husband.

"I love you." Kurt professed the moment he lifted his head to look into her brilliantly blue eyes. She was his angel that was always there to take care of him when he was I pain; whether it was physical or emotional.

"I love you too." Stephanie replied back in a hushed tone of voice.

She moved her arms that had been wrapped around his neck so that she could place both hands on his face. Her well manicured hands, she used to pull him closer causing their noses to touch, and then finally, she brought his lips to hers. As they began to kiss, Angle brought his hands to her face. He loved the taste of his wife's kiss. While it was arousing, it was also comforting. He knew she was willing to stand by him when dealing with Karen's shit; and knowing that made him feel much better.

Not long after his arrival at the Landon arena in Topeka Kansas, Paul was able to spot Torrie Wilson getting her makeup done in an alcove of a hallway. She hadn't noticed him watching and was busy talking to Janet the makeup lady. Her blond hair had already been styled and she was dressed in a low cut sexy business suit. She was obviously going to be continuing her role as the sexy business assistant of Theodore Long.

"Hey Jan, you mind giving us a minute to talk?" Levesque asked approaching the two woman.

"Yeah sure, no problem, I'll just excuse myself. Torrie, I'm just going to go grab a quick cup of coffee. I'll be back to finish." Janet answered putting down her makeup brushes to excuse herself from the alcove to give Paul and Torrie space.

"What do you want, Paul?" Wilson asked with a hint of anger in her voice. She obviously hadn't forgotten about the last time they were together. This was going to be an uphill battle.

"I just wanted to apologize for how I acted that morning at my house. I was a jackass. I was upset because my ex-wife has man making seeing my daughter difficult and I took it out on you. I shouldn't have done that." Levesque told her in the best sincere sounding voice he could muster.

"Yeah you were a jackass. You also embarrassed me in front of Stephanie. You have some serious issues you need to work out, Paul." Torrie indicated looking right into his hazel eyes as she spoke what she believed to be the truth.

"I know I'm not perfect. And what I did to you wasn't okay. I was wondering if you could do something for me."

"I think I've done you enough favors." Torrie quickly argued back putting a hand up to signal her objection to the idea.

"Well it's not just a favor for me. You see, you really made an impression on my three year old little girl, Aurora. She keeps asking me if you are going to come to her little brother's first birthday party. Steph invited you. Would you go with me? It would mean a lot to my little girl." Paul lied.

Torrie gave a long exhale before diverting her eyes to the hallway. She was obviously thinking about the invitation he had just presented her with. Levesque knew bringing Aurora into the equation was the smartest thing he could have done. It was actually making her contemplate giving in.

"I'm going to have to say no. I really don't want to get in the middle of whatever drama is going on between you and Stephanie. You obviously aren't ready for a new relationship so it wouldn't be fair to Aurora if I showed up with you at the party and presented myself as your girlfriend. Tell her I'm sorry that I couldn't come." Wilson finally told him.

Levesque face quickly changed to a look of disappointment. He didn't say a word in reply to Torrie's rejection. What could he say? It wouldn't do him a bit of good to curse her out because she wouldn't go along with what he wanted. That's what he would like to do. After all, she had been his only shot at being accepted at the McMahon beach house. Now he didn't know what he was going to do. He had been so confident in the idea that he would be able to persuade the blonde diva into joining him. Paul never thought she would reject him. With the party being on the upcoming Saturday, he needed to come up with a backup plan and fast.

"Was that Mike calling back? Did he get in contact with Karen or her attorney?" Stephanie asked her husband the moment he hung up the kitchen cordless phone.

The Angles had called Kurt's lawyer earlier in the day and had been playing the waiting game while the man did his job in locating Angle's ex-wife. Stephanie hadn't even bothered making an appearance at the office. She had relied on blackberry and emails to keep tabs on her corporate duties. There was no way she was going to leave Angle alone with the kids while he waited on such important news about the location of his children.

"Yeah, he, ugh, he got in touch with the real estate agent Karen used to sell the house and she got him in touch with the agent that helped her relocate. She took the kids to Tennessee." Kurt reported with no emotion in his voice. He was still in shock that Karen had taken the children so far away from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania.

"Tennessee? Why there?" Steph asked narrowing her eyebrows.

"Um, He was able to get a home contact number from the agent. He talked to Karen briefly and apparently she's engaged to be married to Jeff Jarrett. She and the kids moved in with him at his house in Hendersonville Tennessee." Angle muttered looking off into space as if he was in a trance. He was blown away by the news because it had been the first time he had heard it.

"Jeff Jarrett? When did she start seeing him? He's the founder of TNA Wrestling, isn't he?"

"Yeah he is…And I have no clue when it started…I didn't even know she was with him…"


	32. Chapter 32

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-Two

The weekend was finally here and the McMahon-Angle family had all traveled south to celebrate little Andrew Vincent's first birthday in the Florida sun. Vince and Linda were happy to play host at their private beach abode. It was going to be quite casual; barbequing hotdogs and hamburgers, followed by a frosted birthday cake with a single candle sunken in the white icing.

"I still don't understand why you insisted on inviting him to our family party." Vince insisted to his daughter while he watched her help Linda setting the back deck up for the afternoon party.

Stephanie knew this would be her father's reaction to the news of her invitation to Paul. It was part of the reason that she only let her mother in on her plans to allow Paul to attend with his girlfriend. Linda was understanding and could see how it would benefit Aurora to have her father attending family occasions. Vince, on the other hand, wanted no parts of the idea. His reaction, that was expected, was the reason that Steph waited to the day of to let her father know. She had to at least tell him before Levesque showed up. If she never told him about the invitation and Paul came "unannounced" Vince would most likely throw a fit and that wouldn't be fair to Paul.

"Dad, Paul is an extension of our family. He is Aurora's father and I think that it is important that she sees that we include him as a member of the family. Just because Paul and I didn't work out and are not going to be together anymore, doesn't mean Aurora has to do without seeing her dad." Steph dictated back. She was hoping that her clear cut reasoning would be enough to satisfy her father and allow him to drop the topic.

"He can see Aurora on his own time, this is our family time. Being invited to Aurora's birthday was different. He's nothing to Andrew." McMahon attested getting somewhat exasperated by his daughter's view of her ex-husband.

Neither Stephanie nor Linda made an attempt to reply to Vince's argument. It was clear that the man was dead set against the idea of his former son-in-law being at his grandson's birthday party. Trying to change McMahon's mind would most likely lead to a fight, and both Linda and Steph didn't want that. This was little Andrew's first birthday and they wanted it to be a happy one.

"Kurt, do you want to help me out here? You can't be thrilled about this." Vince asked Angle, trying to gain an ally in the situation. He knew that his new son-in-law was not fond of Levesque, surely he would agree.

"Andrew is Aurora's little brother. Steph thinks it will make Aurora happy if her daddy is allowed to visit with her at her brother's party. I told Stephanie that I was fine with it since it's for Aurora." Kurt answered back taking a momentary break from playing with Andy and Aurora on the deck floor.

"Did Aurora herself say that she wanted him there? The answer is no! Kurt's the man who Aurora thinks of as her daddy! He is the only father figure she needs! If it was up to me, I'd have that selfish bastard relinquish is parental rights and have Kurt adopt Aurora to make it official!" Vince hollered causing his face to turn a nice shade of red.

"Dad!" Steph quickly retorted with wide eyes.

She couldn't believe what was coming out of his mouth at their family gathering. Her eyes darted over to her little girl. She was afraid Aurora had heard and understood what it was her grandfather was saying. The three year old was looking over to see the source of the yelling but she didn't look upset.

"Vince, that's enough. Stephanie and Kurt are Andrew's parents, if they are okay with inviting Aurora's father to our family party than we should be too; like the adage goes: if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. I don't care what you think of Paul Levesque, he is your grand daughter's father and an employee of ours so you will not cause a scene. Today is about baby Andy, not you." Linda finally told her husband in a calm yet reprimanding voice.

"What's going on here? Marissa, the kids and I are a few minutes late and we miss all the action. The party didn't start without us, did it?" Shane asked with a chuckle the minute after he emerged from the sliding glass doors of the beach house with his wife and sons.

Shane knew he was arriving in the midst of one of his father's tirades. He knew that humor was helpful for defusing the situation. Linda smiled and made her way over to her son to give him a hug in acknowledging his arrival. She then hugged and kissed each of her grandsons.

"Shane, do you know who Stephanie is letting come to the part-"

"Hey, Dad, why don't you show me that beautiful new speed boat in the water that you just bought? We could take her out when all of the guests arrive. She looks like a beauty." Shane mentioned cutting his father off before Vince could stay on the topic of Paul Levesque.

"Oh I love it. You won't believe how powerful it is. The acceleration is phenomenal." Vince told his son.

Linda gave her eldest child a smile and a nod as an unspoken way of thanking him for getting his father off his Paul Levesque rant. Then Stephanie did the same as she watched her brother walk with their father down the deck stairs and toward the docks that were on the side of the McMahon's beach property.

"I see boat too!" Aurora announced as she ran over to the edge of the deck and called out. Her shouting caused her uncle Shane to double back quickly and throw her on his back for a piggy back ride to catch back up with Vince who was already almost to the dock.

"Kurt, is everything okay?" Linda asked her son-in-law the moment she noticed that he kept refraining from play with the children so that he could strain his neck to look around the side of the beach house.

"Yeah, I'm just keeping an eye out for Kyra and Kody. My lawyer was able to demand that I have visitation for their little brother's birthday. I hate that we have to negotiate visitation through lawyers." Angle replied in a voice that expressed his sadness about the situation with his two children from his first marriage.

"Well Karen is spiteful and she knows that withholding your children from you is what hurts you the most. Don't worry babe, Kyra and Kody will be here. And if she goes against the lawyers, she and I are going to have a problem." Stephanie assured her husband while she kept an eye on her one year old son who was crawling toward the deck stairs that led to the sandy beach where his sissy had gone.

"Oh no you don't, Mister Angle, we don't want any booboos on the birthday boy." Steph quickly stated while she ran over to where her son was pulling himself up on the rails of the deck like he was about to try and go down the steps himself.

Andrew let out a spoiled whine the moment his mother picked him up. He kicked his legs and then stiffened his body to show his unhappiness with being stopped from fearlessly exploring his new environment.

"Oh someone has a bit of a temper like his grandpa." Linda pointed out with a chuckle. "I'll get the baby gate and set it up so we don't have to worry about him exploring the deck."

"I should give just set up the walker that we got him for his birthday. Hopefully then he will walk off some of his energy and take a nap." Stephanie replied before she sat her son down where a few of his toys were sitting. It was the spot on the deck where she wanted him to stay. She popped a pacifier in his mouth so that his whining would cease.

"We do not want him to be too tired and cranky for his birthday party." Mrs. McMahon commented with a smile as she watched the baby's crying stop thanks to the pacifier and him being put back down on the deck.

Kurt was completely detached from his wife and mother-in-law's conversation about his son. His focus was still on the front of the beach house. When his eyes caught sight of a black limousine pulling up in front of the house, he moved farther at the edge of the deck to try and get better view.

"Who the hell is this in the limo?" Angle asked aloud causing his family to turn their attention to him and his curiosity.

"Are you going to check it out?" Steph asked watching her husband quickly descend the deck stairs before Linda placed the safety gate barrier in its place.

Stephanie knew that it made no sense for everyone to usher to the front of the home to see who was arriving. She was hoping that it was Karen arriving to drop Kyra and Kody off. The arrival of his children would definitely put Angle at ease and allow him to enjoy his baby son's first birthday party.

As Kurt made his way to the front of the house and closer to the limousine, he saw the driver emerge from the tinted automobile and quickly make his way around to the passenger door that faced the beach house. The moment the door opened, a pair of little legs swung out and Kyra hopped out in a cute little pink dress.

"Daddy!" Kyra shouted with enthusiasm the moment she saw her father making his way from the side of the beach house. She quickly ran full force toward him, not bothering to wait for her little brother who was being helped out of his car seat by the limo driver.

"Hey sweetheart, how's my little angel? I missed you so much!" Angle told his child the moment he bent down to catch her in his arms.

"I missed you too. Can I go swimming in the ocean? Mommy packed my bathing suit. She packed Kody's too." Kyra ask while she hugged her daddy.

"Where's Mommy, little girl?" Angle quickly replied back, answering her question with a question of his own.

Surely Karen was in the limo dropping their children off. The only adult Kurt had seen with them was the limousine driver. Maybe she just didn't want to get out and say hello to him. Either way, Angle didn't care. His two children were here and that was all that mattered.

"She's going on vacation on a big boat with Jeff. Mommy said to Jeff that you were a pain in her a-word and if you wanted the kids then you can have them for the rest of the week." Kyra Marie dictated back. She was giving her father an accurate account of her mother's behavior minus the curse word.

"She went on a cruise instead of bringing you guys here? You flew to Florida by yourself?" Kurt immediately questioned, his eyes widened.

"Yeah, you aren't mad at us, are you Daddy?"

The six year old's eyes were filled with worry when she saw the look on her father's face. Angle couldn't believe what he was hearing from his daughter. What was Karen thinking sending their two small children on a plane by themselves to be dropped off like by a chauffeur as if they were a package being sent via UPS?

"No sweetheart, I'm not angry at you and Kody. I am just worried because you travel so far all by yourself. But I'm happy you guys are here. I've missed you both so much." Kurt quickly answered back. He had motioned for the limo driver to step away so that he could finish getting his oldest son out of his car seat.

"Oh great, they're here! Hi Kyra and Kody! Oh my Gosh, you guys are getting so big!" Stephanie gushed with a wide smile when she saw that her husband was returning to the back deck with his children in tow.

"Hi Stephanie." Kyra said with a smile and a wave.

She was old enough to remember the many times she had been around her stepmother, even before Steph and Kurt become involved romantically and married. Kody on the other hand, was a little shy in front of his father's new wife and of his own father for that matter. The little guy was sticking close to his older sister, showing his uncertainty of the adults his mother had sent him to be with.

"Kyra and Kody, you two remember your little brother, Andrew, right?" Angle asked his kids while ventured over to the part of the deck that Stephanie had sat Andy with his toys. He quickly brought the birthday boy over to see his siblings.

The last time Kody and Kyra had laid eyes on their younger brother was right after Andrew Vincent was born. Kurt had been the one to make the effort by picking up both children and taking them to the hospital to see their new baby brother. Karen had made it clear that she wasn't going to inconvenience herself with driving the kids to Connecticut just because Stephanie had given birth.

"He looks different. He looks more like Kody now, before he was all wrinkly." Kyra commented aloud, giving her assessment as to how her youngest brother looked now compared to how she remembered him.

"He does look a little like Kody, doesn't he? You can tell they're brothers." Kurt agreed with a smile as he watched Andy remove his pacifier from his mouth and throw it across the deck before letting out a screech of excitement. He was clearly enjoying all the attention he was getting.

"Hey no, Kody, that's your little brother's don't put that in your mouth. Give it to Daddy." Angle told his almost three year old son when he saw him pick up the baby's pacifier and pop it in his own mouth.

His father speaking him to directly caused Kody's to move behind his older sister, showing his shyness. Unlike Kyra, Kody wasn't completely used to Kurt's presence. He had no memory of when his mother and father were together. And because of the lack of time spent with his father, he was slow to warm up to him.

"Kody, give the binky back to Daddy." Kyra instructed moving so that her little brother could no longer hide behind her.

"Thanks buddy, who wants to get their swimsuits on and play on the beach?" Kurt asked after he accepted the pacifier from his slow to warm two year old.

"Me!" Kyra exclaimed raising her right arm up in the air as she jumped up and down a few times to show her excitement.

"Will you stop looking at yourself in the visor mirror and just get out of the car?" Paul shouted to express his annoyance with the young blonde in the passenger seat of the rental car. He was leaning against the car with his arms folded. They had been in the drive way for what must have been five minutes.

Paul was already late getting to Florida and was pissed off because there weren't any limousines available for use when he arrived. Not only did he have to waste money on two plane tickets, one for him and one for his mandatory date, but now he had a rental car fee.

"Will you chill out? We're going to a party. I have to look my best. My makeup got smeared during the flight. Do you want your date to look like a hot sick mess?" Barbie "Kelly Kelly" Blank explained before she rolled her eyes at her date's ignorance to her high maintenance.

"Fucking ditzy broad…" Levesque muttered under his breath while he began to walk up the driveway not even waiting for the young female to get out of the car.

"What's your rush? You couldn't wait for me?" Kelly whined with a bitchy attitude that Paul knew so well from every female he had ever dated. She had to hustle to catch up with him especially because she was wearing heels.

"No I couldn't, if I waited for you the party would be over before we even made it to the back of the beach house. You should just be lucky I invited you at all. All the other divas would give their two front teeth to get the opportunity to go to a private McMahon party. Just keep up with me and keep your mouth shut." Paul told her while walking through the sand at a quick pace.

He wasn't going to tell the young girl that she had been his last resort for a date. Having Torrie as his date would have made things go so much smoother. At least that blonde wasn't a high maintenance brat. The things he put up with in order to see his ex-wife and daughter.

The young diva was of course overjoyed to be invited to be Paul Levesque's date anywhere. The fact that they were going to a McMahon-Angle party was even better. She knew that it was a chance for her to impress Mr. McMahon. If he liked what he saw, who knows, maybe she would be moved to RAW.

"Hey don't tell me to- oh shit, hang on, I almost twisted my ankle!" Kelly Kelly screeched in discomfort.

"Maybe I could get Angle to break the damn thing." Paul thought to himself. He had come to a brief stop so he could look back and watch the young woman struggle with her footwear. The thought of seeing Kurt snap that whiny little bitch's ankle was enough to put a smirk on his face.

"Who wears heels to the beach? You couldn't have brought flip flops or something?" He asked annoyed walking back to where she was struggling.

"I figured we would be on a deck the whole time. You never said anything about having to walk a mile in the sand. These are the Milano heels that go with this dress." She quickly replied grabbing onto his muscular arm in order to steady herself so that she could remove both high heels.

"Will you just come on? We're almost there." Levesque insisted pulling away from the diva's grasp so that he could continue to walk on.

Before the young woman could reply, Paul had already left her far behind as he drudged through the pearly white sand and then around the side of the back deck. He could still hear his date complaining about how hot the sand was, but he didn't care to listen.

"I've got one, why are hurricanes named after women?" Shane asked both Kurt and Vince while the three of them stood around the grill with beers in hand.

"Why?" Angle asked with a smile turning to his brother-in-law for the punch line. Vince just chuckled and turned the hot dogs and burger patties. He had heard this one already at the office.

"They come into your life wild and wet but when they leave they take your house and car with them." Shane replied back with a chuckle.

"Oh man, that's funny. I hadn't heard that one." Kurt said through a burst of laughter. The joke's punch line even made Vince chuckle a bit despite the fact that he had heard it before.

"I've got a better one, a naked blonde walks into a bar." Vince answered back with a joke of his own that he seemed to be proud of judging by his tone of voice.

"She says to the bartender-oh shit, he's here."

Both Shane and Angle narrowed their eyes in confusion before they too saw the late arrival of Paul. They weren't the only ones who saw Levesque, both Linda and Stephanie took notice of him walking up the deck stairs. They had been busy setting the table and getting the children seated.

Up until his late arrival, all three men had been relieved in their assumption that Paul Levesque was simply going to no show. After all, it was only Steph that had been so insistent of inviting him in the first place. None of them really thought be belonged at their family party for the obvious reason that he was no longer a party of the family.

"Welcome to the party, we're glad you made it here okay." Linda McMahon said cordially as she was the first to approach him, opening the safety gate so that he could access the deck easily.

"Thanks, I hope I didn't hold anything up arriving late." Paul muttered back with a polite smile to match his former mother-in-law's kind demeanor.

"We were just about to sit down for lunch followed by birthday cake. Where's Torrie?" Stephanie inquired the moment she joined her mother in greeting her ex-husband.

"I didn't come with Torrie. We aren't together anymore. I came with Kelly Kelly. She's this week's model, if you catch my drift." Levesque replied back with a smirk and a wink.

"I'm going to get the baby food out for the birthday boy." Linda told her daughter as a way of excusing herself from what seemed to be an awkward situation.

Steph gave a small nod to her mom to show that she had heard her. Her attention was focused on what her ex had just said. She didn't seem to find his nonchalant admission of his break up with Torrie to be at all humorous. She gave him a look to show her disapproval. In her mind, she wondered what he was doing with Barbara Blank, a twenty-two year old diva. The girl was much too young for him and had no business coming with him to visit his child.

"Thanks a lot for waiting for me! Ugh, I hate the sand! Please tell me that there are drinks at this party. I so need to get smashed." Kelly Kelly said in a loud obnoxious voice the moment she finally caught up with Paul.

"Hello Barbie Jean, it's nice to see you. We were just sitting down to eat lunch. You're welcome to find an open seat. I just need to borrow Paul for a quick second." Stephanie said in his best polite voice before she motioned for her former husband to follow her.

Levesque couldn't help but smile at the fact that Steph was directing him to follow her away from his date to talk privately. He could only fantasize that it was to sneak off to do just a handful of the dirty things that would go through his mind any time he was around her. He couldn't get that lucky.

Angle's eyes followed his wife as he watched her and Paul enter the beach house through the sliding glass doors. What was she doing leading him away from the party?

"She's just probably asking him why he brought that barely of age blonde as his date. I know it's what I'm wondering. It's probably another one of his childish attempts to make my sister jealous." Shane told Kurt after he saw the look on his brother-in-law's face. Shane could tell that Angle was getting suspicious.

"Why would she have to ask him that in private?" Angle replied, his eyes had not deverted from their fixed state on the sliding glass door that was now closed.

"You know, if you wanted to get me alone, you should have been more subtle." Levesque told his ex-wife as he flashed a smile the moment they were alone in the kitchen that overlooked the shoreline.

"So what, you and Torrie broke up and now you are with Barbie Blank? When did you start dating her? You are already to introduce her to your daughter?" Stephanie asked beginning to overload him with questions as she crossed her arms.

"Since when do you care about my personal life? We aren't together anymore, remember? You made it perfectly clear that I needed to have a date to attend the party today, so I got a date." Paul explained as he shrugged his shoulders like her inquisition wasn't a big deal. Secretly, he loved how uncomfortable Steph seemed to be with the idea of him dating a much younger woman.

"That's not what I meant, Paul. Aurora seemed to be getting used to Torrie being with you and I thought you and her attending a family function would help establish a level of normalcy for her. You showing up with a young woman that is well over ten years your junior is only going to be confusing and uncomfortable for her." Stephanie replied back with her explanation that justified how he had completely misunderstood her intentions for inviting him.

"Is it uncomfortable for Aurora or for you?" Levesque immediately shot back with a smirk on his face.

Steph's eyes widened and she said nothing. Either she was blown away with his assumption about how she felt or he had hit the nail directly on the head. Either way, she wasn't quick with a comeback to deny what he was implying. For this reason, Paul reached his hand out to take her hand in his.

"Don't…" She muttered jerking her hand out of his grasp. Steph had looked away from his gaze at the same time she was rejecting him.

"What's going on in here, Steph?"

Both Stephanie and Paul's attention quickly shifted to Kurt the moment he made his presence known while slowly walking into the kitchen. Angle was looking on in suspicion as he approached his wife and her former husband.


	33. Chapter 33

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-Three

"I was just asking Paul for his reason in bringing Barbie Blank to visit with Aurora. I didn't want to do that in front of the girl so I brought him inside to discuss it. That's all." Steph answered back quickly in response to her husband's inquiry of what was being discussed between her and her ex.

Her quick response made Angle sigh with relief. The fact that his wife was able to quickly give him a reason as to why she was talking to Paul away from the family and his date assured him that she was telling the truth.

"Okay, well, your mom's got her hands full with serving lunch to all the kids and then we have to get the cake ready so we can sing happy birthday." Angle then mentioned placing his arm around Steph while he glared over at Levesque.

"I better go back out there. Six kids at a table is a lot for Mom and Marissa to handle. They'll need all the help they can get." Steph said aloud excusing herself from the kitchen.

Stephanie's departure left Angle and Levesque alone in the kitchen. There was an awkward moment of silence before Levesque spoke aloud.

"I was just telling Steph how much I enjoyed spending the night with her on Monday. You really should go to shows without her more often; that way, Stephy and I have more time together." Paul informed Angle showing a hint of a smirk on his face.

Angle felt his fingers instinctively curl up into his hand, forming fists. He could feel his anger rising in response to his wife's ex-husband trying to make it seem that he had his wife during his absence. Over and over again, Kurt had to tell himself to keep cool. He had promised his wife that he would give it his all and get along with Levesque in all future encounters. Now his promise was being tested.

"Save your breath, okay? I already know you spent the night because Aurora was sick. You slept in a guest room. You may have wanted something to happen, but it didn't. You need to just let your obsession with my wife go, because the only way you are going to have her is in your dreams." Kurt finally asserted while maintaining his composure.

Angle's words struck a chord with Levesque. Not only was he annoyed that he failed to get a rise out of him but the comment about only having Stephanie in his dreams was like salt in an open wound. Paul hadn't stopped thinking about the erotic dream he had experienced that night. He still couldn't get over how real it had seemed to him and how much he desperately wanted it to become a reality.

"Is that what she told you?" Levesque asked with a sneer.

Angle let out a long sigh and then a forced chuckle. He licked his lips once before pulling them taunt into a smile.

"You really are pathetic, you know that? We both know damn well you coming here has nothing to do with you wanting to visit with your daughter. You just want to cause problems. If you had Steph on Monday, you wouldn't be bringing that young blonde skirt here on your arm as a pitiful attempt to make her jealous." He then retorted with a smile before he turned his back on Levesque in an attempt to walk away.

"You wish you had a twenty-two year old to go home with. We both know that you don't have the required sexual fortitude to keep up with a piece of ass that young and willing." Paul scoffed in an attempted to have the last word before Angle departed.

"I don't have to wish for anything. Stephy is quite willing and capable of taking care of my every need. She and I both have an insatiable sexual appetite that we attempt quench quite frequently. Why would I want that kid when I have my beautiful wife, your ex-wife, Stephanie McMahon-Angle?" Kurt remarked after he turned back around to face Levesque.

He had purposely spoke explicitly about he and his wife, using every vivid adjective he could think of to emotionally crush Paul. And it had worked. He could see the color drain from Levesque's face as the words settled into his consciousness. Angle might as well have punched him in the stomach because all the air left Paul's body. He stood there like a deflated balloon without words to throw back. Happy to have gotten the last word of the argument, Kurt left to join his family.

Levesque felt like the kitchen was going to close in around him. It had been a while since had experienced such anger being accompanied by hurt. It wasn't Angle's words that hurt him, no he was too much of a man to let the words of the enemy rock him. It was the cold reality of his situation that killed him.

No matter how much Paul wanted to deny, he had lost Stephanie to Angle. The cold hard truth was that she was no longer his wife and she and their daughter did not live with him anymore. Kurt had everything and he had nothing. And why? What made Kurt Angle so God damn special? The guy was no more virtuous by any stretch of the imagination.

Stephanie was so insistent in labeling him as the reason their marriage ended because of the affair with Michelle North. How could she villanize him when her new replacement husband had a history of cheating himself? Why wasn't Angle being punished? He had made the same mistakes in the past, why wasn't he too paying for them? Why was Steph so trusting of Angle given his past history? After all, she made it clear that because of the Michelle North affair, she couldn't trust him again. Didn't she see how hypocritical she was being?

"Your date is beginning to ask where you are..."

Paul was immediately snapped back to reality when he heard the voice of his former brother-in-law cut through the silence of the room. Levesque's hazel eyes focused on Shane as he slowly entered the kitchen. McMahon wore a look of seriousness that could only mean he had something to say to him; as if he didn't get an ear full from Angle.

"How's it going, Shane?" Paul asked trying to start the conversation as a civilized one. The last thing he needed was a heated argument with Steph's brother. Shane and Linda had remained neutral toward him after the divorce and he wanted to keep it that way.

"Look, I'm not going to say that you shouldn't be here. My sister gave you the green light to come and visit with your daughter. So that is what you should be doing. Leave Stephanie and Kurt alone. They are happy and I don't want you screwing that up. Today is their son's first birthday party and they don't want nor do they deserve any drama." Shane replied bluntly.

"What makes you think I'm the one that's causing drama? You should be chastising your new brother-in-law. You know, the 1996 Olympic gold medalist that everyone thinks is so wonderful and infallible."

"I'm warning you to stop this now. I talked with Kurt and I know what you are up to. Do you really think causing Stephanie grief in her life is going to endear her to you? Leave her alone and let her live the new life she built for herself. I'm telling you this straight up because I believe you once were a stand up guy. I don't want to label you as an enemy to my family, but when you do things in an attempt to hurt the people I love, you can be damn sure I will." McMahon threatened before turning his back on the man who used to be a member of his family.

So much for Linda's son taking after his mother; He had no idea what was really going on within his sister's marriage. Shane lived in New York City and for the most part kept to himself. Family occasions such as birthday parties and other annual holidays were the only time that he would bring Marissa and the boys to visit. He only knew what Angle ran and told him. It made sense that Kurt would poison Shane's mind against him. The McMahons only cared about the people in their family circle. Angle had replaced him in the circle and the only way he would ever get back in was if he reclaimed his rightful place as Stephanie's husband.

"Where were you? I had a beer waiting for you but I ended up drinking yours after I finished mine." Kelly Kelly commented with a chuckle, placing her hand on thigh the moment Levesque took the seat next to her on the back deck.

Paul completely ignored his young dates questioning and kept his eyes focused on Stephanie who was helping her mother serve food to the children. Angle's disgusting words about his intimacy with her still plagued his mind while he observed her from afar.

It was clear to Paul that he and his date had been purposely seated at the other end of the long table. They were sitting farthest away from Stephanie and Kurt and closer to Shane and Marissa. He was already being treated like an outsider and he had just got there. Little Aurora was sitting among both her cousins and Angle's son and daughter. She seemed to be preoccupied with being surrounded with other children and the party scene in general; she didn't even notice he was there. That's exactly what the McMahon-Angle family wanted.

Kurt took notice that Paul was staring at his wife. Levesque looked he was undressing her with his eyes. The guy had no business being there. He hadn't even approached his daughter yet. Angle walked over to Steph and leaned in close so that he could whisper into her ear.

"Is Paul ever going to say hello to his daughter?" Kurt said in a hushed whisper, in an attempt to clue his wife in to how little her ex-husband seemed to care about seeing his child.

Steph looked up from administering to her youngest child, her eyes focused on Paul who she could see sitting next to his young date looking pretty miserable at the other end of the table. She was surprised that he hadn't made an attempt to see his little girl and give her a hug.

"Hey Paul," Stephanie call aloud to address him directly, "you know your daughter is over here? Are you going to say hi to her?"

"Would it even matter to her if I did?" Levesque muttered under his breath while he slowly rose to his feet to go greet his child.

"Aurora, look who came to visit. It's your daddy. He came to celebrate your little brother's birthday with us." Steph told her daughter in an excited tone of voice hoping it would have a positive effect on her three year old.

"Hey princess, bet you didn't expect to see your daddy here, huh?" Paul said with a smile as he bent down and gave Aurora a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Aurora said nothing in return. She turned and looked at her mother and then her stepfather. She looked confused.

"Daddy here all the time e-sept when he at playtime on the TV." Aurora replied as her little finger of her left hand pointed at Kurt to show Paul that Angle was not only there and accounted for but was hardly ever absent from her life.

There it was again. Another instance where his little girl was referring to the man he despised as her father. It was like none of the time he had spent with her as of late mattered. How hard could it be for her to understand that he was her daddy?

Maybe he shouldn't have come at all. Other then setting him up for an opportunity to be hurt by his own child, Steph really didn't care that he was in attendance. The majority of the family hated him. Nothing good was going to come out of the party.

"Daddy, why is she calling you her daddy?" Kyra asked aloud before Steph even had the chance to correct her daughter.

Kurt's oldest child, Kyra, had heard her stepsister's comment from where she sat just a few seats away. She had seen the little girl pointing to her dad. In addition to the confusion it caused, it also caused a streak of jealousy. Was her daddy replacing her and her brother with these new kids?

"She's just confused, angel. I'm her stepfather. Paul here is her dad but she's not used to spending time with him because he doesn't care to visit her a lot." Kurt explained turning to address his little girl.

"Kurt," Steph hissed through gritted teeth, "was that really necessary?"

Kyra Marie decided to take matters into her own hands in correcting little Aurora. She got out of her seat and walked right over to the three year old.

"That's not your daddy! He's mine, Kody's, and Andrew's! Stop calling him your daddy! The only reason he lives with you and not us is because he married your mom! You have your own daddy!" Kyra hollered right in Aurora's face. Her words were filled with jealous attitude as she stood there with one hand on her hip and the other pointing out her father.

Aurora's eyes widened while filling up with tears. Her little pink protruding lip she tucked into her mouth as she turned to look at her mother. The three year old was trying to hold back her tears but the moment her mommy moved to consoler, it all spilled out. She didn't understand why an unfamiliar older child was hollering at her and telling her that Kurt wasn't her daddy.

It was about time someone set the record straight. While Paul didn't like seeing his daughter yelled at by one of Angle's kids, he had to admit, there was a level of satisfaction to be felt by the truth being spoken by a small voice. Maybe this would light a fire under his ex-wife's ass so that she would finally do something about Aurora's misconception about Angle's role in her life.

"Kyra, that's enough. Come here; come have a talk with Daddy." Angle told his oldest child as he stood up and took her by the hand and lead her into the house where he could speak to her alone.

Kurt couldn't believe Kyra exploded the way she did. He never dreamed that bringing his children to be with new wife and child would cause such drama. This was of course a product of the little amount of time he had sent with Kyra and her little brother. She didn't understand her daddy's new life and why she didn't get to see him a lot anymore. Who knows what her mother told her. Aurora calling him her father in front of Kyra must have just caused her feelings to flood out.

"Kyra, sweetheart, that wasn't nice to yell at Aurora. She's only three years old and doesn't know what she's saying. She lives with daddy because I married her mommy. Her daddy doesn't come to visit her often so she thinks that I'm her daddy because I take care of her." Angle explained slowly after he sat his daughter down on a plush couch in the living room of the beach house.

"Me, Mommy, and Kody live with Jeff now! And you don't come to see me and Kody! So Kody and me can call Jeff our daddy?" Kyra yelled back throwing her father's logic back in his face. Even at the age of seven, Kyra could easily vocalize her feelings when she knew something wasn't right.

Angle looked taken aback by his little girl's words. While he had been missing his children desperately the past several months, he hadn't known that they had a new potential father figure in their lives that could possibly be similar to how he was with Aurora. The mere suggestion of another man taking his place as Kody and Kyra's father made was upsetting. It made Kurt think about how Paul felt hearing Aurora call him her daddy.

"That's not how it is. You and Kody are my flesh and blood. I could never stop loving either of you. I do love little Aurora but it's because I fell in love with her mommy. She is a part of her mommy and so I love her too. She's my step-daughter." Kurt quickly replied kneeling down to his daughter's level so he could look into her eyes while he spoke.

"But weren't you in love with mommy?" Kyra asked softly in almost a whimper as the tears began to fall from her two brown eyes.

Seeing his child cry caused Angle to get choked up. He hated seeing any of his children in pain. To think it was because of him that she was so upset and confused killed him. If only he had been able to spend more time with them after his marriage to Steph. Karen didn't want that but he should have found a way. He should have fought to be with them more.

"Your mommy and I were once very much in love. And the best thing that came out of that love was you and your brother. But people grow and things change. Mommy and I fell out of love with each other. We wanted different things and so we decided not to be together anymore."

"Is that why you're not together with Kody and me anymore? You don't love us anymore too?" She asked with a look of worry as her body stiffened with anxiety.

His little girl was breaking his heart. She was actually questioning his love for her aloud. That meant that it was something that she had been thinking about and questioning to herself for a while. He hadn't been there for her and Kody and this was the result of that. She felt abandoned, just like he feared she would; and Karen was probably more than happy to let her feel that way.

Angle should have forced his right to visitation sooner. It was his duty as a father to make the effort no matter if it got ugly with lawyers. The kids were most important. Kurt felt awful because he had to admit to himself that with his new marriage, becoming a step-parent, and the birth of his new child, he was distracted. How could he explain or justify that to his little seven year old?

Kurt's knee jerk reaction was to blame his lack of involvement on his ex-wife, the children's mother. But wouldn't that be just making an excuse? It would be putting his little girl in the middle of the tug-of-war between him and Karen. She didn't deserve that.

"I could never stop loving you and your brother. I want more than anything to be with you guys all the time. But you live with your mommy in Tennessee and I live with Stephanie in Connecticut. But that shouldn't matter. And I promise you that from now on, we are going to see each other a lot more." Angle promised in a pledge before he took his child into his arms for a warm embrace.

"I love you, Daddy…" She whispered in her sweet little voice through the sea of tears.

"I love you too, angel." Angle replied back in an exhale as he tightened the hug between them.

He could hear his little girl's muffled crying in his shirt during their embrace and it prompted him to pick her up. He was doing his best to console her. Holding her in his arms and rocking her slowly was what worked when she was a tiny baby; that seemed like just yesterday.

It was when Angle turned around toward the entrance of the living room that he saw his wife standing there watching him and his daughter. Steph quickly wiped away a few tears that were streaming down her face before smiling at him. Had she witnessed the whole conversation between him and his daughter?

"How long were you standing there?" Angle whispered to his wife while walking toward her with his daughter in his arms.

"Long enough to witness what a terrific Daddy you are; not that I ever doubted that you were." Steph replied before she leaned in close to her approaching husband to give him a peck on the lips.

She loved seeing her husband interact with his little girl. He was so gentle and loving with her while he tried to make her understand about the divorce. She could only hope that Paul would do the same for their little girl once Aurora started asking questions. She only hoped that when Aurora grew and began to ask why her parents' marriage failed, Aurora Rose would already know how much both she and Paul loved her. What worried Steph was the idea that Aurora wouldn't care to know more about her father and why he wasn't living with her. With the limited amount of time Paul was putting in to being there for his child, Aurora wasn't attached to him anymore.

"Why is everyone so quiet? Isn't this supposed to be a party? So far it has been lame as hell." Kelly complained to Paul who was preoccupied with following his ex-wife with his eyes the moment she reemerged from the beach house with Angle.

"Just put the beer bottle to your lips and keep your mouth shut." He finally muttered in a reply when he noticed that Steph had gotten Aurora and was coming toward him.

"I'm sorry about earlier. Kurt's kids are still adjusting after the divorce." Stephanie explained the moment she approached Levesque at his end of the table.

"So am I." Paul muttered back looking up at the beautiful woman who he used to call his wife.

"Well anyway, I thought Aurora would like to sit with you while we sing happy birthday and have cake." She answered back plopping Aurora down on her daddy's lap.

"Mommy!" The three year old whined outstretching her arms toward her mother to signal she wanted to go back with her.

"Stay with your daddy, Aurora." Steph told her daughter pointing at her like she was a little puppy dog that was being told to stay in its crate.

After commanding her daughter to stay put with her daddy at the end of the table, Stephanie returned to Kurt and their son. Linda had already set the cake at their end of the table and had put the number 1 candle in the middle of the cake.

"You don't want to just put the cake on his high chair tray while we sing happy birthday?" Kurt asked watching Steph removing Andrew from the high chair.

"No, because he'll be too tempted to put his hands in the cake or worse, in the flame of the candle; I'll hold him on my lap with the cake on the table in front of us."

Hearing her daughter's wishes, Linda sat the birthday cake on the table in front of Stephanie's seat. Andy's eyes widened the moment he and his mommy sat down with the birthday cake in front of them. Steph grabbed hold of his little hands the moment that reached out for handfuls of cake.

"Mom, can you move the cake further away from him? He's just going to keep reaching for it." Stephanie requested aloud as the one year old let out a loud whine trying to pull his hands from his mommy's grasp.

"I've got it, babe." Angle told his wife. He was stepping in for his mother-in-law who was busy focusing her attention on her granddaughter at the other end of the table.

"Why isn't Aurora over here next to her little brother? She looks unhappy over there at the other end of the table." Linda reported to her daughter.

"I put her with her father. She needs to get used to being with him."

"Why don't you invite Paul and his date to sit on this side of the table so Aurora can be near you and her brother while we sing happy birthday." Linda quickly suggested hoping to persuade Steph to allow Aurora to be close to her and the baby while still spending time with her daddy.

"Paul, do you and Barbie want to sit down here with us so Aurora can be close to her little brother while we sing happy birthday?" Steph called out. She decided to act on her mother's suggestion after pondering it for a moment.

Levesque let a smile shine through his otherwise dull expression after hearing from Steph herself that she wanted him to be closer to her. The invitation caused him to let go of his daughter so that she could get off his lap.

"I wanna help baby brother blow out his candle!" Aurora Rose announced with glee while she scurried across the deck to her mother and brother.

"We have to sing happy birthday first, sweetie." Steph replied with a warm smile before she put her free arm around her daughter the moment Aurora approached where she was sitting with Andrew.

Linda graciously placed two extra chairs in the only space on that side of the table that was available. While Kelly Kelly looked a bit annoyed being closer to the group of boisterous children, Paul was thankful to get a seat closer to Steph. This was of course until Angle obscured his view with his big bald head as he leaned in to give his baby and then Stephanie a kiss.

"Are we going to sing the song or what?" Levesque asked with a sneer showing his intolerance of the Angles' public display of affection.

"Aw, they are such a cute couple! And their son is so adorable!" Kelly Kelly gushed aloud to Paul whose eyes grew larger. He couldn't believe the mouth on her. As if Angle needed any encouragement to needle him. Levesque wasn't a fool, all the affection Kurt was showering on Stephanie was for him to see; it wasn't genuine.

And as if Paul wasn't feeling queasy enough by his date's comments about the Angles, Vince coming forward to the head of the table was surely going to send him over the edge. He could only wonder what nauseating words McMahon had for his "future wrestling grandson" on the kid's first birthday.

"We are all gathered here today as a family to celebrate the one year anniversary of the birth of Andrew Vincent Angle. May it be the first of many birthdays as he grows into the WWE champion I know he will become. Linda, light the candle so we can sing." Vince announced over the crowd of family in his usual voice that was full of confidence and in this case, pride.

Paul could help but roll his eyes as he watched Linda light the sole candle on the birthday cake. Vince gently pet his grandson's head of hair like he was his prized puppy dog while he too watched Linda. Vince was treating the occasion like the lighting of the torch at the Olympic Games.

And once the candle was set ablaze, the happy birthday song commenced. Everyone did their part, joining in with the well known lyrics to the song; everyone except Paul. He looked like he had been sucking on a batch of sour lemons as he sat sulking in his chair. Levesque didn't know what was worse, having to watch Stephanie and Angle making over their one year old son together or having his clueless date, Kelly Kelly, obnoxiously singing happy birthday in his ear.

When the family finished singing the song, the cake was promptly cut and each piece given to a party guest. The children were of course served first followed by each adult going clockwise around the table. Despite how awkward the situation seemed to her, Steph made her best effort to be friendly to her ex-husband's date.

"I'm sorry if Paul didn't tell you that the party wasn't very formal. I can't imagine trying to walk in the sand with high heels. The shoes and dress are beautiful though." Steph stated with a warm smile.

Stephanie then brought a napkin to her baby's face to wipe away some of the cake smeared on his mouth and cheek. Andrew had been turned loose with a piece of his birthday cake sitting on his high chair tray. In contrast, his three year old half sister was eating her piece like a big girl with a plastic fork.

"He didn't really tell me much about the party when he asked me to be his date at the SmackDown tapings." Kelly explained after took a large mouthful of what was her third beer. Her reply caused Paul to elbow her in the ribs.

"Hey! You're going to knock me off my chair!" She hollered at him; quickly correcting herself after she spilled her beer.

The interaction between the two of them caused Stephanie to narrow her eyes for a moment before she turned her attention to her children. She wasn't even going to attempt to figure out what was going on between her ex and his date. That was their business and she had children to look after.

"Aurora, make sure that when you put your milk glass down you don't put it at the edge of the table. It could get knocked off." Steph told her daughter before reaching over and moving the child's beverage to a safer spot.

"No brother, that's my kitty! You have your own toy!" Aurora hollered the moment she saw her little brother reaching for her toy cat that was sitting on the edge of the table. It was far out of his reach but it was the fact that he was reaching out for it that annoyed her. After moving the toy, Aurora placed one of the one year old's small plastic tug boats on his high chair tray.

"I see she knows the difference between her toys and the baby's toys. Too bad she doesn't know the difference between her daddy and his." Paul pointed out aloud before rolling his eyes.

This comment caused Stephanie to pause for a moment. She was going to give Aurora the same tired lecture about the importance of sharing with her brother before her ex-husband brought up the comparison of Aurora knowing which toys were hers but not knowing who her real father was. Could using the toys as an example for the three year old finally get her to understand that Kurt was Andrew's father and that Paul was hers?

"Hey Aurora, you know how kitty cat belongs to you and the baby toys like this tug boat belong to Andrew?" Steph asked her daughter. She was beginning to set up the comparison for her three year old. She had physically taken the plastic tug boat in her hand and put it by the baby to provide a visual aid for what she was explaining.

"Yeah, it's my kitty cat. It's not baby's. He got his own toys." Aurora quickly replied back. She had no trouble knowing what was hers.

"Well, just like baby Andrew's tug boat is his and not yours, Kurt…" Steph explained clearly as she pointed to her current husband.

"He is Andrew's daddy and not yours. You have your very own daddy." She told her daughter. Kurt even decided to help his wife in her attempt to explain things by taking Andy from his high chair and holding him.

"Who my daddy?" Aurora asked wide eyed like it was the first time she had heard that Kurt wasn't her father.

A small chuckle escaped Stephanie's mouth followed by a smile. This was the first time after many failed attempts of explaining that Aurora actually seemed to be understanding that Kurt wasn't her father. Before she could tell her that Paul was her daddy, Levesque chimed in and answered the question for his little girl.

"I'm your daddy, Aurora. Your mommy and I made you when we were married. Me, you, and Mommy used to live together like you live with Kurt and Andrew now. And-"

"Okay Paul, let's not overload her with information. I think one new concept is enough for right now." Stephanie commented cutting off her former husband before he had the chance to explain the divorce to their daughter.

"He's my daddy, Mommy?" Aurora Rose asked looked directly at her mother for confirmation. She wasn't completely sure she was ready to believe the man who she didn't live with that was claiming to be her daddy.

"Yes, sweetheart, he's your very own daddy and no one else's. Just like all your toys are yours and no one else's." Stephanie insisted with a smile that she first gave her daughter and then her ex-husband.

Aurora let out a happy little giggle through her smile. She liked the sound of having her own daddy who belonged to no one else. Up until now, Aurora had thought that she had to share a daddy with her brother, Andrew. She liked this idea much better.

"That's brother's daddy." She verbalized pointing at Angle who was sitting next to Steph now holding his son, Andrew.

"And this is my daddy! Only mine, just like my kitty cat!" Aurora proclaimed with excitement as she pointed directly at Paul while holding her toy cat in the air showing that she made the connection.

His little girl's proclamation caused Paul's heart to leap from his chest. He felt like a weight was being lifted off of his chest instead of being dropped down onto it. Finally, his little girl knew the truth. He was her daddy, not Kurt Angle, and now she knew that. He was one step closer to reclaiming his life.

"I guess paternity is a hard thing for kids to grasp these days." Kelly Kelly tried to whisper Paul in a snicker. Do to the number of beers she had consumed that contributed to her inebriated state, it wasn't a whisper at all and everyone at the table heard it.

"I would say knowing when to keep your mouth shut is a hard concept for children to grasp." Steph quickly retorted without missing a beat. The fact that the young woman would make such an inappropriate comment after witnessing a milestone in a three year old's life shocked her. What was Paul doing with her? She was obviously still a child herself.

Paul didn't even acknowledge the brief exchange between his ex-wife and his date. Nothing could take the focus off of this moment. If only Stephanie would come to the save revelation; that he was her real husband, not Angle.

"Can Daddy have a big hug, Aurora?" Levesque asked with his arms extended out toward her. He was hoping that his daughter's new revelation of him being her daddy would finally cause her to want to be with him like when she was a baby.

There was a brief moment where Aurora looked like she had to contemplate fulfilling her father's request. But it was brief and fleeting and before Paul knew it, his little girl had catapulted herself into his arms at a run. He let out a wince and then a chuckle when the three year old jumped into his lap and hugged him.

This was the first real hug he had received from his little girl since she was a little baby. Her arms were actually around his neck and she was hugging him just as tightly as he was hugging her. It wasn't until he had her in his arms in an embrace that he realized how much she had grown since he had held her close.

She was no longer the little baby she was when Steph took her away from him. The sweet smelling Johnson and Johnson baby lotion that Stephanie used to slather her with was no longer there when he inhaled. Her infancy had passed and time had marched on even without him being there. But at the same time, as big as she had gotten, she was still his baby girl. The softness of her beautiful fine brown hair still felt the same in his cupped hand on the back of her head. She was still her mom's little twin, perhaps that made his interaction with her bittersweet for Paul. He couldn't help but look at his daughter without seeing his former wife; the woman he was still in love with.

Steph felt tears escape from her eyes which she quickly brushed away with her hand. Seeing her little girl actually bonding with her father for the first time since the divorce was such a relief to her. She could only hope that this breakthrough in Aurora's understanding would be the first step in her getting to know her daddy again. She wanted that for her little girl.

"Who's ready to go for a ride in Pop's new power boat?" Vince asked aloud beckoning all of the party guests' attention.

"We do!" All the kids shouted in unison with mouths full of birthday cake.

"Dad, I don't think right now is the right time. They just ate and-"

"Nonsense, we're burning daylight. Besides, the birthday boy wants to go for a ride in Pop's brand new boat." McMahon retorted, cutting off his daughter's sentence as he reached for his little grandson.

Angle noticed Steph looking in his direction. Her eyes widened after she captured his gaze. It was a silent signal to not hand over their child to his overzealous grandfather. Kurt wasn't surprised Stephanie's reaction. Vince taking their one year old on open water in a power boat wouldn't be a smart idea.

"Actually, it's time for Andrew's nap. He gets cranky if he doesn't get one." Angle explained making an excuse that he hoped his father-in-law would accept.

It wasn't a lie either. Baby Andy always took an afternoon nap each day around the same time. If the nap was put off too long, the baby would be irritable before finally falling asleep around dinner. A late nap would mean he would be wide awake all night. It had happened before and it was enough of a headache for the both of them that they made sure to stick to the baby's schedule.

"Oh bullshit, he's not tired. Just one quick ride on the open sea and he can take a nap." Vince pressed on. He quickly began to bring each set of fingers to the palms of his hands and then back outward. He was signaling to his son-in-law to give him the baby.

Before Stephanie could attempt to intervene, it was Linda who came to the rescue. She quietly walked over to Kurt and the baby giving her youngest grandson a loving smile.

"Little Andrew Vincent is going to stay with his granny while grandpa takes the older children out on the boat." Mrs. McMahon declared as Angle willingly handed his son over to his mother-in-law.

The birthday boy's face immediately lit up with excitement the moment he realized he was being held by his granny. He let a few lines of gibberish that could be considered close to the English language escape from his smiling mouth. His soft little hands, he brought to his grandmother's cheeks.

"Damn it Linda, you never miss a chance to under mind me. Well come on kids, let's go for a ride in my big power boat! Shane, are you coming?"

Vince was looking over at his son who seemed to be quite comfortable at his seat at the table next to his wife, Marissa. He had been enjoying his small slice of birthday cake quietly, making a point to keep out of the interaction between Stephanie and her husband and ex.

"No," Shane replied back with a smile after his wife had given him a nudge and a laugh. "I'll sit this one out, Dad. But I'm sure Kurt would love to join you with the kids."

Angle let out a slight chuckle in Shane's direction before muttering an obscenity that he was sure Shane could here. This caused Shane O'Mac to laugh boldly not just at the fact that he had volunteered his brother-in-law to be a passenger in what would surely be a hell ride but also at Angle's reaction to it all.

"Have fun, honey." Steph whispered in his husband's direction with an evil smile and one eyebrow raised. She was delighting in the fact that her husband had been the one signed up to go with her father.

"Oh yeah, Steph, I'm sure Dad wouldn't mind if you came with us." Kurt answered back aloud, with an evil smile of his own.

"Yeah Stephanie, you and Kurt both come for a ride! You'll love this new boat!" McMahon exclaimed showing his exuberance for taking the family out on his new toy.

"I'll go too." Paul said speaking up for himself.

His vocalization that came out of nowhere caused Stephanie to turn and look at him. The look on her face was clear. She wanted to know why he would willingly volunteer himself to be subjected to Vince.

Seeing the puzzled look on his former wife's face, Paul decided that he needed to give a justification for his readiness to go on the boat.

"I thought it would be a good opportunity for Aurora and I to do something together. I'll hold her for you. I'm sure you and Angle will have your hands full keeping a hold on his two kids." Levesque explained.

Stephanie looked like she had bought his excuse for inviting himself. Lord knew she wouldn't approve of the real reason he wanted to go. As petty as it would seem, he didn't want Steph and Aurora going without him on a boat with Kurt. He was going to invite himself into these family activities even if the McMahon-Angle family didn't want him there.

"Oh wow, is the boat really fast? This is going to be awesome!" Kelly Kelly shrieked with excitement causing Paul to look over at her in disgust. He could smell the alcohols on her breathe and he just wished she would go ahead and pass out.

So with the direction of "Captain Vince McMahon", the four other adults and five children boarded the powerboat that was docked nearby on McMahon's property. Shane's sons, Declan and Kenyon, were seated right with their grandfather at the helm. Aurora had been agreeable to sit on her daddy's lap with her Mommy right next to her who was holding Kurt's first son, Kody. Kyra was sitting on Kurt's lap. McMahon had insisted that Kelly sit in the seat closest to one side of the boat. Since the young woman was clearly drunk, she was right there at the edge of the boat if she decided to get sick. The last thing Vince wanted was vomit all over his plush leather seats in his boat.

Right after untying the boat from the dock, Vince turned the ignition key and made the large engines fire right up. He let out a laugh and then threw the lever all the way forward giving the boat a jack rabbit start away from the dock.

"Jesus Dad! You need to warn us before you just take off like that! We're holding children back here!" Stephanie screamed, trying to be heard over the engine.

Her father made no indication that he even heard his daughter. Vince was too busy driving his boat forward with increasing speed. Despite Steph's complaints, the children all laughed and cheered to be going fast in the boat.

"Check out this turning radius!" Vince hollered over his engine before he quickly cut the wheel causing the power boat to begin a tight figure eight.

This caused Steph to place her hand on her husband's leg in an attempt to brace herself. She needed all the help she could get because Kody was doing anything but sitting still. The three year old was trying to climb over onto his father in order to hang off the edge of the speeding boat. Feeling his wife's touch, Angle quickly looked over and took notice of his wife's struggles; His arm he placed around her to provide her with a feeling of safety.

In the second large turn to the right, Aurora began to reach for her mommy letting out a terrified squeal that could barely be heard over the roaring powerboat engines and the whipping wind. Her cries were loud enough to be heard by her mommy. Stephanie motioned for Kurt to take his son into his arms so that she could attend to Aurora. At the same time, Kelly Kelly had latched onto Paul like a crab with both her arms wrapped around his muscular right arm. Her grip on him felt like a blood pressure cuff that was completely inflated with air. She looked like she was somewhat out of it.

"Get off! Hold on to the side!" Paul yelled as he pried the young blonde's gripe off of him. He really wished he never brought her at all. She was serving more as a hindrance than a help in regards to his quest to win Steph's heart back.

"Just come closer to me! It will calm her down!" Paul hollered to his ex.

Levesque smiled when to his delight, Steph wiggled out from under her husband's arm so that she could move closer to him and their daughter. As soon as Steph moved close to him and Aurora, he quickly took the initiative to put his arm around her bringing his ex even closer to her child.

And just as Paul took his eyes off of his daughter and Stephanie, he saw Angle looking over at him. Kurt's eyebrows were furrowed, his eyes narrowed. He had obviously taken notice of Paul's bold move putting his arm around Steph. Angle didn't like it and Paul knew that. How did he like having to watch another man being affectionate to her? Paul had to deal with that every time he was around the Angles, it was about time Kurt had a taste of his own medicine.

"Go faster, Pop!" Declan yelled with excitement patting his grandfather on the back.

"Slow the hell down! Hey, you're coming in too close!" A nearby fisherman hollered waving his fishing pole and other arm at the approaching speed boat from his small fishing boat that was powered by a single motor. This area in the ocean not far off from the shore was usually calm enough for fishing but thanks to Vince, a tide of waves was causing his boat to bob around like a small cork in the middle of the Atlantic.

"Watch this!" Vince hollered out to his grandson's with a smile the moment he caught sight of the fisherman waving his arms around and yelling right in his path.

With a slight turn of the wheel, the powerboat barely maneuvered around the small watercraft causing a large wave to hit and turn over the smaller boat. The fisherman was thrown into the ocean water. When he saw that the man had been thrown over boat, Vince pulled back the throttle of the boat to the lowest setting. The loud engines died down a great deal. The abrupt loss of speed caused quite a jolt for Vince's passengers.

"You stupid asshole, didn't you see me? I'm going to call the coast guard on you!" The man screamed the moment he was able to get his boat flipped back over and climb back into it.

"Go ahead, damn it! Call the coast guard! In fact! Do it twice!" Vince screamed back.

As mortified by her father's behavior as Stephanie was, it was the overwhelming feeling of nausea that kept her from speaking up. With all the hard bouncing turns, and the quick stopping, she was beginning to feel like she was going to get sick.

"Don't think I won't! You have no business operating that boat at top speed in this area!" The fisherman hollered back shaking his wet hand sternly as he vocalized.

"I'll drive my boat where ever I damn well please!"

"Babe, are you feeling okay?" Angle asked; his voice full of concern while he had to hold tight onto his three year old son so that he wouldn't climb out of the boat.

"No…Switch spots with me..." Steph moaned before she began to move to her husband's side of the boat. Before Angle could even react and move out of the way, Steph almost fell on top of him and the children getting to the side of the boat.

Immediately, a combination of undigested birthday cake fell from her mouth into the ocean water. Then she coughed a few times followed by a gag and then yet another mouth full of vomit was emptied into the water.

"Vince, turn the engine off! Steph's getting sick!" Kurt hollered right overtop of Vince and the fisherman's argument.

McMahon turned to view his daughter getting sick off the side of his powerboat. He immediately then turned off the motors. Everyone on the boat had their eyes on Stephanie. Paul wanted to spring into action and comfort her but Angle had already beaten him to it.

"It just came on me all of a sudden. I wasn't feeling sea sick." Steph croaked between waves of nausea.

"You're going to be fine, baby. Just let it all get out of your system." Kurt replied in his best soothing voice as he gently held his wife's hair away from her face with one hand while rubbing her back with the other. Kody had been giving to his sister to sit on her lap.

"I think that's the last of it. Oh God, I still feel sick." Steph moaned allowing herself to move away from the edge of the boat and back next to her husband.

"Mommy, okay?" Aurora asked cocking her head to the side as she wore a concerned look for her mother.

"Mommy is going to be fine, Princess. She just has a bad tummy ache." Kurt replied back to the child before her own father could do so.

"Mommy is okay, Aurora. I probably have that nasty stomach bug you had earlier this week."

"Come here, honey. You'll feel better as soon as we get back to the beach house. It will be okay. You can take a warm bath and your mom and I will watch the kids." Angle told his wife taking her into his arms before giving her a peck on the side of her head.

Levesque sat there watching Stephanie with a faraway look in his eye. But even though he was staring at her, his mind couldn't help but drift elsewhere. Paul remembered the last time he took care of her like Angle was doing now. No, it wasn't her deceitful pregnancy with Angle's baby; he didn't even see her throw up while she carried Andrew. It had been the pregnancy she had lost; what would have been their second baby together.

He remembered how under the weather she became and how it had put a damper of her excitement at the prospect of them having a second child. Paul clearly recalled her asking him to hold her and comfort her. But he didn't. Why didn't he? What would cause him to be so neglectful to his then beautiful pregnant wife? Oh that's right; he was too consumed with his affair with Michelle North to even care.

"That would be great, honey. You're so sweet, I love you." Steph muttered back through a weak smile. Her hands, she placed on her husband's smooth face which she used to bring him in close to her, pressing their foreheads together.

Was Stephanie really that easy to please? A little bit of lip service, an embrace, and a few little kisses was all Angle had to do to be world's number one husband? Why the hell hadn't he taken the time to do that too? It surely wouldn't have taken more than a few minutes to comfort her.

Shit, who was he kidding? He should have never gone to New York to be with Michelle when she was so sick. After all, it was his absence in the midst of her being hospitalized that brought about scrutiny into his "media appearances" for the company. It all could have been avoided if he would have just stayed by her side during those first rocky months of her pregnancy. If he had played his role as the perfect husband, she would have never been compelled to go snooping in his email and discover his indiscretions. There would have never been a confrontation that escaladed to her fall and the loss of that precious life they had created.

"Paul, don't you think you'd better help Kelly?" Angle asked Levesque bringing him out of his trance like state.

Levesque had been so deep in thought about his past that he had failed to notice that his date was following Stephanie's lead and was now puking off the other side of the boat. Her blonde locks were already all in the salt water as she vomited up the alcohol that she had so greedily consumed. That stupid bitch would do anything to shift his focus from Steph onto her; this was just one example of many from the party.

"She'll live. I told her not to drink so damn much." Paul commented back nonchalantly as he turned back to look at the Angles.

Steph couldn't help but shake her head at her ex-husband's comments. Was this really how he was going to treat his date? While he did have a point in the fact that the young woman had no business drinking that much, he still should have showed her some compassion. But really, was she that surprised by his lack of feelings for the young girl? The memory of him leaving her alone pregnant and vomiting in their bathroom for the night, still lingered in her mind. It really was a shame that upsetting memories such as that one were constantly seeping through her consciousness while being around her ex-husband.


	34. Chapter 34

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-Four

"Did everyone have fun?" Linda asked her returning family members the moment they rejoined the rest of the family on the back deck.

The children enthusiastically expressed that they did have fun on the wild ride Vince had taken them for. It was the look on Stephanie's face that told the story of what the adults endured for the duration of the boat ride.

Stephanie still felt terrible. Kurt had helped her get out of the boat and she was still leaning on him because of still feeling queasy. It really didn't help that Barbie Blank was staggering in the sand ahead of her with little help from Paul. She couldn't seem to walk in a straight path and was constantly having to stop and get sick. Steph was trying not to even look at her, in fear of it making her throw up again too.

"I think we are all happy to be on land again." Angle told his mother-in-law with a smile to answer her question; as if she hadn't already gotten the message from the look on her daughter's face.

"You got that right. I would have kissed the sand on the shore if Barbie didn't puke all over it." Levesque commented with a slight chuckle before nodding over to Kelly Kelly who had already collapsed in one of the nearby deck chairs with her face on the table in front of her.

Linda went to open her mouth to voice concern for the young woman but it was her husband's load booming voice that cut her off from what she was about to say.

"It was a great day for boating, Linda. Too bad the birthday boy had to stay behind and sleep through it. He would have really enjoyed himself." Vince stated while taking notice of his sleeping grandson in his wife's arms.

"I'm glad he stayed behind. Five kids to hold onto on a powerboat going top speed was enough. Adding a one year old would have made it even more chaotic." Angle admitted giving his wife's back a gentle caress the moment he saw her rub her forehead like she was in pain.

"Oh I can imagine." Linda replied with a nod. Angle knew of course that she wasn't just giving him lip service but she actually knew what a hell ride that had just been through. Poor Linda had to have been subjected to many of them throughout her marriage to Vince McMahon.

"Was he okay for you?" Steph asked her mother in a soft spoken voice that didn't seem to have a lot of energy behind it. While she was no longer leaning on her husband like she had been while walking the distance in the sand back to the beach house, she was still standing close to him enjoying the nice back rub he was giving her.

"He was a perfect little angel. He fell right asleep right after you left. I didn't have the heart to lay him down." Her mother replied in a sweet endearing voice as she a second to glance down at the sleeping one year old. It was when Linda looked back up at Stephanie that she noticed that her daughter's color was off.

"Are you feeling all right, Stephanie? You look a little pale." Linda inquired with concern.

"I think I got a touch of what Aurora had earlier this week. I'm feeling really tired and I still have an upset stomach." Steph explained with some tightness in her voice and her hands resting on her stomach.

"You really should just go take some time for yourself, Steph. If you are worried about the kids being too much for your mom and Marissa to handle, I can watch Aurora." Paul spoke up and offered.

He was taking this opportunity to show her that he acknowledged the fact that she was under the weather and that he was willing to pitch in and take care of their child. Despite the fact that Angle had already encouraged her to take some personal time when she returned to the beach house, he felt that he needed to say it as well.

"Don't you have to look after that lush you brought to the party? If she vomits on this deck or on anything in my house, you better clean it up!" Vince exclaimed cutting off what would have been a conversation between Stephanie and her former husband. He was pointing over at Barbara Blank while he chastised Paul. He had no problem dressing him down in front of everyone.

Before Paul, Stephanie, or even Linda could say a word to Vince, it was the little voice of Aurora that spoke up against her grandfather.

"Pop! Don't yell at my daddy!" The three year old hollered as she pulled on her grandfather's shorts to make sure she had his attention. Her outburst caused Andrew to awake from his slumber and let out a loud whine.

Levesque's face quickly formed a smile. He didn't know what warmed his heart more: his baby girl referring to him as her daddy all on her own or her sticking up for him to her grandfather. This was one of those moments where he had a video camera so he could preserve it forever. His little three year old could see that her pop was being mean for no reason. Why didn't Stephanie defend him to her family too?

"Aurora, if you ever yell at your grandpa like that again; you are going to get a spanking right on your little fanny." Vince declared in his booming voice before he grabbed her hand that was still pulling on his khaki shorts.

"Get your hands off my daughter!" Paul yelled getting right in Vince's face. Levesque's movement was so quick that it startled Vince and caused him to let go of his grip on Aurora's hand. Free from her grandfather's grasp, the three year old ran over to her granny and little brother and buried her face in her granny's chest.

"Who the hell do you think you are getting in my face? This is my house, damn it! You are only here because I condoned it! Steph wanted it! I didn't!" Vince screamed back right into Paul's face.

As queasy as Stephanie felt, she knew she had to step in before things got physical between her father and her ex-husband. So she sprung into action, wedging herself in between Vince and Paul. Being a referee was the last thing she wanted to do after puking the contents of her stomach in the ocean, but it had to be done and no one else would likely do it.

"Dad and Paul, please, can we please just be civil to one another? Dad, Paul had every right to be upset with you being mad at Aurora for sticking up for him. Besides, you shouldn't be reprimanding her when both her parents are right here." Stephanie said aloud looking directly at her dad and then over her shoulder at Paul a few times as she spoke.

Levesque could feel his temper flaring but he was controlling himself since Steph had stepped in between him and McMahon. She was saying everything he wanted to say. He especially loved the fact that she was referring to the both of them being Aurora's parents. Yes, both of them were her parents, Paul and Stephanie. Angle didn't fit into that at all.

"And Paul, while I admit the way my father went about discussing Barbie with you was wrong, he does have a point about her behavior today. I don't know the extent of your relationship with that young girl. That's really none of my business, but I do know that she's not someone I want my daughter around."

'My daughter', didn't she mean 'our daughter'? Levesque couldn't agree more that Barbara Blank was definitely not stepmother material, but there was something keeping him from speaking up in agreement. That something was of course, Kurt Angle. Who was Stephanie to judge his choice of companion when she was married to the ultimate wolf in sheep's clothing?

"Well what if I say that I don't think Kurt is someone I want our daughter around? Oh that's right, it wouldn't matter now would it because you married the guy and moved my child into a house with him. Did I have a say in that, Stephanie?" Paul heard himself blurt out before he had a chance to catch himself. His thoughts were running right out of his mouth. There was no filter present.

Steph's eyes widen and her mouth fell open slightly. She couldn't believe what just came out of his mouth. He had been behaving so civil and loving toward his daughter and then for no reason he spewed poison about Kurt. What was going on with him? It was like he had two different personalities: Jr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Sometimes he acts like the self centered man who cheated on her and broke her heart and then other times, he has lucid moments where he acts like the man she fell in love with and married. Why did she have to deal with this duality?

"What the hell do you mean by that?" Angle spoke up as he made his way over to the confrontation. He was surprised that Levesque was bringing him into the altercation.

"Kurt, please don't feed into this." Steph pleaded calmly placing her hand on her husband's chest the moment he approached them. With her husband being brought into the mix of things, she definitely saw the possibility of the situation escalating.

"No, I want an answer. Where the hell does he get off saying I shouldn't be around Aurora? I love that little girl like she was my own flesh and blood!"

"But she's not! When are you going to get that through your thick bald head? She's nobody to you! Just because you're screwing her mommy doesn't make you her daddy!" Levesque hollered back out of reflex. All his hatred and frustrations were coming pouring out with his words.

Levesque's rage was suddenly curtailed as he felt a stiff hand right across the left side of his face. He was caught completely off guard by it but because of the strength behind the slap, Paul knew immediately that it was his ex-wife's hand delivering the stinging shot. He quickly brought his hand up to his face as his eyes shifted to Stephanie who was shooting him a dirty look. No one said a word; they couldn't believe that Steph just slapped her ex.

Paul's face felt like it was on fire as he stared right into his former wife's sparkling blue eyes. Steph's eyes looked glassy; almost doll like, because of the tears that were forming in them. Her bottom lip was trembling; was it from anger or was she about to cry, Levesque didn't know; maybe it was both.

Stephanie's mouth opened gapped open. It looked like she was going to say something but she paused. Her hands she brought to her abdomen as a look of discomfort came over her face.

"Steph, you okay?" Kurt called out the moment his wife turned her back on them and began to run toward the sliding glass door that connected the back deck to the beach house.

It was clear that she was in a hurry. After she entered the beach house, she hadn't even bothered to close the sliding door. Aurora had popped her head up from her granny's chest after hearing her stepfather asking if her mother was okay.

"Mommy, okay? Granny, Mommy okay?" Aurora inquired pulling on her grandmother's shirt while still sitting in her lap.

"I'm going to go see if she's okay. Please just keep an eye on the kid's for me, Mom." Angle muttered to his mother-in-law before he began to walk the same path his wife had ran.

"Mommy is fine, sweetie. Just stay right here with Granny and brother." Linda answered back to her granddaughter while her eyes followed Kurt before he disappeared inside of the beach house.

Levesque felt terrible. Not only was he probably going to have a bruise where she had hauled off and slapped him, but he knew he just blown any progress he had made with Steph in the past few weeks. He really had to upset her with his comment about Angle. It had been so long ago that he had angered her enough to cause her to slap his face.

And he remembered the very last time it had happened too. It had been the night where she had found out about his affair with Michelle. That was another night where he had lost his self control and had said things that he wished he could have taken back. Thinking back to that hard slap she had given him on the stairs of what was their home, brought back an even worse memory that had taken place only moments after. It was the heart wrenching recollection of her unforgiving fall down their stairs. Her clutching her abdomen, in a fetal position on the hard wood floor; knowing that he had a part in her pain and knowing later what they had lost. Now he had hurt her again.

Paul felt himself began to move in the direction of the sliding glass door. Not only was he concerned about Stephanie's health, he wanted to have his chance of apologizing for flying off the handle moments ago. Lord knew he would have to work face to repair the damage he had just done. She was definitely pissed off at him. The sooner he tried to smooth things over, the better.

Levesque only made it a few steps across the back deck before Stephanie's brother, Shane, cut off his stride by stepping right in front of him. McMahon's face told the story. He was doing his job as he saw fit; the protective big brother who was willing to make himself the barrier between his little sister and the ex-lover who he thought would harm her. Before Paul could even speak up in his defense as to why he should be able to check on Steph, Shane spoke up.

"Haven't you done enough?"


	35. Chapter 35

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-Five

"Get out of my way, Shane." Paul demanded in a stern voice that could only mean that he meant business.

Levesque knew that it was in his best interest to remove himself from the surrounding McMahon family. Vince and Shane were surely chomping at the bit to follow up Steph's slap with further denigration and then an escort off the premises. Shane acted like Paul's words didn't even faze him. Vince's son even moved in closer and got right in Paul's face, like he was daring him to put his hands on him in an attempt to get through.

"Shane, let him pass. Don't get involved in your sister's business." Linda told her son in a calm voice while she sat there still holding both of Stephanie's children.

Despite how adamant Shane had seemed to stand his ground only moments ago, he slowly began to move from Paul's potential pathway to the beach house. He had obeyed his mother's words.

"You really are a momma's boy, aren't you?" Paul asked in a sneer before walking on. The younger McMahon wasn't so big and bad when his mother ordered him to stand down.

"Keep running your mouth, Levesque! It will never change the fact that Steph left your cheating ass for the best shooter in the business! Angle's a real man who treats her right!" Vince quickly called out to Paul before he had a chance to leave the back deck.

McMahon's smart ass comment caused Paul to stop dead in his tracks. It made him cringe hearing Stephanie's father praising the fact that she had left him for "the best shooter in the business", Kurt Angle. Didn't Vince know that Angle had a history of cheating too? Were Vince and his family really that blind to Kurt's bullshit? Or perhaps McMahon wasn't ignorant to Angle's past at all but chose to over look it for the sake of having an Olympic Gold medalist son-in-law; As if that was such a big fucking deal. Still, Vince was a hypocrite for calling him a cheater. Just because the family chose not to discuss it, it was still common knowledge, even public record, that Vince hadn't been faithful to Linda most of their marriage.

"You want to bring up my cheating, Vince? You were the one that wrote the book on philandering! How many divas did you sleep with over the past twenty years, while your wife was at home raising your two children? You have absolutely no right to pass judgment on me! The only reason that you are even at your grandson's birthday party with your family is because Linda found it somewhere in her heart to stay with you after she caught you with your pants down on more than one occasion! How many second chances did Linda give you before you decided to clean up your act? Steph didn't even give me one!" Levesque fired back.

He was tired of taking Vince's shit. For too long he had taken McMahon's unfair treatment with stride. Paul wasn't going to do it anymore. He was going to put Vince in his place, even if it meant that he was going to be forced to leave the party afterward. It needed to be said.

Vince McMahon looked shocked. It was obvious that he wasn't expecting to be on the receiving end of a tongue lashing courtesy of his much despised ex son-in-law. With the surprise came a hefty amount of embarrassment. It had been a long time since someone had thrown his past marital indiscretions at him. The McMahon family had since moved on and made it a point to never bring it up. But now a former member of his family, a man he had once welcomed into the fold with open arms and gave his daughter to, was bringing out the skeletons from his previously locked closet.

"Who the hell do you think you are dragging up ancient history? You want to talk history? Who created "Triple H", Hunter Hearst Helmsley, the king of kings, the cerebral assassin? That was me! You would be nothing without me! I sign your paychecks! I decide what Triple H does, says, and who he jobs to! Your career can be over with the snap of my fingers!" Vince screamed back. His face was turning from a nice shade of red to almost purple. Veins running along the lining of his neck were popping out under his skin like a raised road map to hell.

Kyra and Kody, who had been frozen in place since things got serious and their father had left the back deck, both quickly ran to Linda in order to be closer to their little half brother. Baby Andrew was not only being held by his granny but his big sister, Aurora, was hugging him for dear life. Shane's sons were glued to their mother. Marissa had directed her husband to sit down next to her and stay out of the argument between Vince and Paul.

Did Levesque want his WWE career to be over? God help him, he actually caught himself contemplating the idea while Vince screamed his threats. The idea of ridding himself of Vince McMahon forever didn't sound like that bad of an idea. No longer would he have to deal with any of the McMahon-Angle clan. He had made a substantial amount of money during his wrestling career. Perhaps McMahon was giving him the perfect opportunity to hang up his boots.

Could he really do it though? Could Paul really leave wrestling, the profession that had been is passion since he was a young man in the early nineties? And if he walked away from WWE, wouldn't he be walking away from Stephanie and Aurora too? That was definitely the last thing he wanted to do. Playing into Vince's hand and leaving the company like a dog its tail between its legs would be like resigning to the idea that Steph was meant to be with Angle. That would never happen.

"You know what Vince, you can snap your fingers and fire me and I can pick up, call my lawyer, and have him slap you with one hell of a wrongful termination lawsuit! Just try me! I'm sure a new lawsuit from a former employee would not make the share holders very confident in your product! Especially when that former employee was one of the company's top earners! You didn't make Triple H! If you had had your way, I would still be doing curtsies while wearing riding chaps and spouting a fake French accent! Shawn and I made DX! I made The Game, Triple H! You sold the merchandise because of me; because of my performance in and out of the ring! Don't get confused, old man!" Paul finally shot back.

Levesque wasn't going to let McMahon get the better of him. He was finally willing to speak up against his former father-in-law, regardless of what the ramifications would be. After all, if he was ever going to get back with Stephanie, he would have to show the McMahon family that he would no longer allow them to openly disrespect him. Surely Steph herself would appreciate his new found fortitude against her father. But Steph wasn't there to witness this. She was inside the beach house with Angle. Only her family was there to see his stand against Vince.

"Who are you calling, 'old man'? Does this body look like the body of an old man, damn it!" Vince screamed with a swift tug of his short sleeve t-shirt at the neck line. With what seemed to be taken right out of a Hulk Hogan promo, McMahon tore open his t-shirt, exposing his freakish muscular physique.

"This has gone far enough! Have the two of you forgotten that we are at a one year old's birthday party? Vince, you need to go somewhere and cool off before you do something you'll regret!" Linda hollered over her crying grandson who was now crying with a fierce intensity that was quite unsettling.

"Why should I leave?" Vince questioned his wife. "This is my grandson's party at my beach house! He should leave!"

"Vince, you were clearly the instigator in this altercation. Now you need to excuse yourself so you can get yourself together. Why don't you go upstairs, change your shirt, and then get some work done in the home office. I will call you when Stephanie and Kurt decide it's time to open birthday presents with Andrew." Linda explained in a calmer tone of voice. She did this while beginning to rock her grandson in her arms to sooth him and his older sister.

"Where did my daddy go?" Kyra finally asked Linda the moment Vince retreated to the beach house at the request of his wife. The little girl sensed that things were finally calming down and it gave her the courage to speak out.

"He went inside to see if Stephanie was okay." Linda assured her.

"I'm going to go see him." Kyra announced before beginning to walk away from Linda and toward to beach house.

"Oh okay, you two will probably find him in the powder room. It's right down the first hallway past the kitchen and on the left." Mrs. McMahon replied with a smile as she watched Kody scurry after Kyra so that he too could go find their father. He wasn't so much concerned about finding Kurt as he was staying close to his sister.

The pain was already starting to build in Steph's knees from kneeling on the hardwood floor of the powder room, but she was too sick to care. The vomiting had resurfaced and was coming at her in waves that were unrelenting. It was worse than what Aurora had; thank God, she wouldn't have ever wished this on her little daughter.

"Do we need to go to the emergency room?" Angle asked in a voice full of concern.

Angle's eyes were wide with worry since he followed his wife into the bathroom and saw her getting sick again. He was doing his best to help her: holding her hair back so that it would not fall into the toilet water, rubbing her back with his free hand. But those were the only things he could do. He couldn't take her nausea away.

"No, I'll be fine. I just have a stomach bug or something. It's going to have to work itself out. You should just go be with the kids, it's our son's first birthday party. I'll be fine in here." She croaked before she felt her body retch involuntary.

"I'm not leaving you in here with your head in the toilet. Andrew is only a year old. He doesn't even understand that it is his birthday. We are here for the weekend. There is no reason we can't just leave the gift opening for tomorrow."Kurt told her in a loving whisper while watching her vomit yet again.

"Daddy?"

Angle's attention diverted from his wife to the small quivering voice that was coming from the bathroom doorway. There stood Kyra with her little brother, Kody, holding her hand. Her brown eyes were wide and sparkling with tears. She looked afraid.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" Kurt asked instinctively at the sight of his child who was on the verge of tears.

"Why did you leave us? We were scared. There was a lot of yelling." Kyra explained as the first few tears escaped from her eyes. Little Kody was looking up at his big sister as she spoke. He didn't seem to know what to make of everything that was going on.

"I didn't leave you two. Stephanie was sick so I came in to check on her. There's nothing to be afraid of. Mr. Levesque is just upset. He'll get over it."

During Angle's explanation, Kyra began to venture further into the bath room; her father's assurance that everything was going to be fine allowed her to curtail her tears. Kyra's fear was obviously replaced with curiosity as she focused her attention on Stephanie who was still throwing up over the toilet.

"Why is Stephanie throwing up?" Kyra then asked aloud.

"She most likely got a stomach bug that her little girl, Aurora, had this past week. She'll be fine, she just needs some rest. Why don't you and Kody go play with Shane's sons?"

"No, we want to stay with you!"

Kyra Marie intended to stay close to her father. With the heated altercation from earlier, she felt it was best for her and Kody to be with him. If staying with Kurt meant being in the bathroom with their sick step-mother, then so be it.

"Kurt, I'll be fine. Go be with Kyra and Kody and enjoy the party. I'm starting to feel a little better." Steph finally spoke, sitting up from her position over the toilet.

Angle let out a sigh before bringing his hand up to his wife's face. Gently, he caressed her cheek with his finger tips. She looked pale, and he could tell that she was still sick despite her claim to be making a recovery. His wife was telling him to go be with his children and leave her to tend to herself. Did she really not need his love and care or was she just trying to be a selfless step-mother who wanted her step-children to have time with their father?

"Are you sure you have to leave? We haven't started opening Andrew's gifts. And you know this beach house has plenty of extra guest rooms. Stephanie and Kurt are staying over and leaving in the morning." Linda explained trying her best to convince her son, Shane that he shouldn't be leaving the party with his wife and children.

"Thanks for the offer, Mom, but Declan has little league tryouts tomorrow morning. Now that he's five we promised him he could try out for the team so he can play t-ball next season." McMahon explained to his mother while he watched Marissa round up their boys.

"Mom, why is that lady sitting over there with her head down on the table? Is she asleep?" Declan asked his mother as she was leading him and his little brother, Kenny.

"She's not feeling well. You and your bother go over and say goodbye to your cousins, Aurora and Andrew. Hurry up, we have to say goodbye to everyone before we leave." Shane's wife directed her older son.

"It was a great first birthday party, I'm glad we could be here for it. I love that the whole family was able to get together." Marissa told her mother-in-law before she gave her a hug.

"Thanks so much for taking the jet down here. I know how busy you guys get in the city. We really should get the family together more often. Have a safe trip back." Linda said back to both Marissa and Shane.

"It was nice seeing you again, Paul. I'm sorry about the circumstances earlier." Marissa said politely with a weak smile in Levesque's direction.

Paul was sitting next to his passed out date. He had planted himself down in his seat right after Linda had banished her husband to his study. Paul felt it was better to allow Aurora's grandmother to comfort her. And now, his daughter was sitting on the deck with Angle's son while saying goodbye to her cousins. Up until Marissa's direct words toward him, he had felt like an invisible onlooker to the McMahon family while Shane was announcing his family's departure. He was a bit surprised by Marissa's acknowledgment of him and her polite parting words. Perhaps she didn't share her husband's same sentiment of him. The McMahon women were obviously the wiser in the family; Steph needed to get with the program.

"No need to be polite and proper with him, honey. It's common knowledge that he's only here in a pathetic attempt to destroy the happiness Stephanie has found with Kurt. Mom is just too Christian to kick him and his drunken date off the property. If we didn't have to leave right now-"

"Shane, you and your dad made your point earlier. Don't do this again in front of the kids. Come on, we need to say goodbye to your father, sister, and brother-in-law." Marissa interjected in a calm voice before she took her husband's hand to lead him into the beach house.

"Kenny and Declan, come on, give Gran a hug and then let's go say goodbye to the rest of the family." Shane instructed his sons.

The boys ran to Linda and took turns giving her a hug before they disappeared into the beach house with both of their parents. With her son and his family inside, Linda took a moment to survey the party scene. There were several paper party plates with bits of melted ice cream and cake still covering them, and some glasses of milk were still sitting there half drunk. There was still a great deal of cake left sitting out at the foot of the table. She had her work cut out for her.

"Paul, would you mind keeping an eye on Aurora and Andrew while I put the leftover cake away and say one last goodbye to Shane, Marissa, and the kids?" Linda asked her former son-in-law.

Levesque was quite surprised that Linda had no problem entrusting him with looking after Stephanie's children, especially after what her own son had accused him of only moments ago. It was clear that Mrs. McMahon didn't believe that about him. If she had any ill thoughts of his intentions, she would not have been so quick to allow him to watch two of her grandchildren.

"Yeah, sure, it's no problem."

"Thanks, I appreciate it. I know you are probably ready to call it a day and get Barbara back to the hotel so she can rest. I promise you, I will only be a few minutes." Linda answered back with a quick smile. She grabbed the left over cake with her right hand and used her left hand to grab a few paper plates so she could dispose of them in the kitchen.

When Paul was the only adult left on the back deck, besides his comatose date, he left his seat and made his way over to where both of Steph's children were still playing on the deck. The newly one year old was surrounded by new toys from his parents, yet he seemed to be favoring his big sister's stuffed kitten. Aurora was sitting with him, playing with the other stuffed animal she brought to the beach house, the puppy dog.

"Baby brother, don't put Kitty's nose in your mouth!" Aurora said with a loud giggle. Her little nose wrinkled as she let out a laugh before she took to stuffed animal from her brother's mouth and let him grab hold of it again to bring it into a hug.

"Why don't you take that toy away from him? It's yours, not his. He has his own toys to play with." Levesque advised his daughter after watching the interaction between the two children.

"I share with brother, Daddy. Mommy said I need to share and be a big sister. It's baby's birthday so I have to share lots." Aurora explained with a proud smile. She was happy that she was following her mother's wishes to share like a big girl with her sibling.

"That baby isn't your bother, Aurora. Mommy and Daddy only had one baby together, and that was you. Calling him your brother would be a lie, because he isn't Daddy's son like you are my daughter."

"He is my baby brother, we share our mommy. Mommy says we are her angels." Aurora responded back to her father's insistence.

"Do you know why you have to share your mommy, Aurora? It's because of that baby." Paul retorted in somewhat of a nasty tone of voice.

Aurora looked confused by her father's words. She didn't understand what he was saying. She looked over at her brother as her father went on with his explanation:

"Before your mommy had that baby, you lived with me and Mommy. We were a real family and loved each other very much. It was because of that baby being born that your mommy broke up our family. She hurt me by taking you away from me to live with Kurt. And it's all his fault. Baby Andrew took your mommy from you and Daddy, just like he's taking all of your toys now. If he was never born, you would still live with both Mommy and Daddy and wouldn't have to share with anyone." Levesque told his daughter as he pointed sharply at the one year old.

Aurora Rose eyes were wide as she did her best to internalize and understand what her father was telling her. The three year old could barely wrap her mind around the idea of the little baby causing her to lose her family. But she knew how she felt about him taking her toys. Maybe it was the same thing her daddy was talking about. Was Andrew going to take her toys, and worst of all, take Mommy for himself? Was she not a part of a family because of him? Why didn't her mommy tell her this?

The three year old focused her eyes on her half sibling. The baby looked up from the stuffed animal and smiled at her. And with one chubby hand, Andrew reached out to touch her or her stuffed dog that was sitting in her lap. Just before his hand made contact with Aurora, she sprang into action scooting away from the baby. Aurora's head and eyes then went upward to where her father was standing. Her eyes were searching for his reaction; she wanted to know if she had done the right thing. The approval came in a smile and a nod. Confident that she was acting the way her daddy wanted her to, she quickly leaned back over to the baby and grabbed hold of her stuffed kitty cat.

"This is my toy and you can't take it or my mommy!" Aurora hollered with a swift and hard yank of the toy.

Andrew Vincent was caught off guard by his sister's anger and the force of her snatching the toy. He literally jumped from both her screaming in his face and her swift removal of the stuffed animal from his grasp. And then, after a second, the shock wore off, and he let out a loud wail.

"I didn't hurt him, I just taked my toy back." Aurora quickly told her father in defense of her actions. She was suddenly worried about the ramifications of her decision to no longer share. If her mommy would have been there for what she pulled, she would definitely have been in trouble.

"Don't worry about it, sweetie. You are just taking back what is yours to begin with. He's just a stupid little baby. He'll get over it." Levesque replied while smiling down at his daughter.

"Oh, what's wrong little one?"

Linda had just returned from inside and had quickly made her way over to where her youngest grandchild was screaming somewhat hysterically. She scooped the crying baby up into her arms and placed him on her hip before looking over at both Aurora and Paul for some explanation as to why he was so upset.

"He's been rubbing his eyes the whole time you were gone. I guess he didn't finish his nap because of all the arguing. He must be over tired." Paul told his ex mother-in-law after he lifted his three year old daughter up into his muscular arms and planted a kiss on her cheek.

Never before had Aurora felt more conflicted and confused. Seeing her little brother crying and knowing it was because of her made her feel bad. She had spent the first year of his life loving him and watching out for him. And now her daddy, her real and true daddy, was telling her that Andrew Vincent not only wasn't her real brother, but was the reason why she didn't live with both her mommy and daddy. A family was a mommy and a daddy living with their little girl in the same house. Her mommy and daddy had different houses. Did that mean she didn't have a family? And was it really all because of baby Andrew being born? Yes, it had to be true, why else would her very own daddy tell her that if it wasn't?


	36. Chapter 36

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-Six

"Mommy!" Aurora piped with excitement at the sight of her mother finally emerging from the beach house. She was still in her father's arms while Linda was still trying to sooth Andrew.

"Hi sweetie." Steph answered back in a weak voice before flashing a small smile toward her daughter. Her voice caused her one year old son to look in her direction and extend her arms in to her.

Stephanie was slow in her stride. Kurt was following her closely behind holding Kody in his right muscular arm and holding Kyra's hand with his free left hand. Steph's vomiting had finally relented and she was quick to get back outside to be with her children. Still, she was nowhere near one hundred percent.

"You all right, Steph?" Asked Paul when Steph got closer to where he was standing with their daughter.

His former wife looked very pale; as if all the color from her face had melted away with the hot Florida sun. Levesque was willing to put aside her hurt feelings from being slapped by her in order to inquire about her health.

"I'll be fine." Steph managed to mutter in reply to Paul.

Had Levesque been privy to how sick she was in the bathroom, he wouldn't be asking if she was all right. Still, it was somewhat surprising that he was actually concerned about her and not throwing himself around because of the somewhat red hand mark she gave him on the side of his face. Steph was in no mood to fight with her ex. In fact, she was doing her best to not show any sides of how terrible she was feeling. Stephanie knew both sets of eyes of her children were upon her. She didn't want to scare them because Mommy was so under the weather.

"He's still here?" Kurt asked his mother-in-law as he pointed his finger directly at Paul.

Angle was surprised that his brother-in-law did not mention that Steph's ex-husband was still on the back deck. Kurt thought for sure Vince would have escorted Levesque off the property after his vulgar remark. Since he and Stephanie had decided to postpone the gift opening until tomorrow, there really was no reason for Paul to still be there.

"Yeah, I'm still here." Paul said directly back to Angle after a moment of awkward silence.

The first automatic thought that popped into Levesque's head was to be quick to fire back a venomous retort in Angle's direction. Luckily for him, unlike earlier, he was able to get a grip of his emotions, and not take the bait. Another mean outburst would likely award him with another slap to the face courtesy of his former wife. That is if Steph even had enough energy to do so. She looked weak and definitely not herself. The last thing she needed was another fight between him and Angle.

"Did he not get his full nap? I don't want to hold him and risk the chance of giving him this bad stomach bug I have." Stephanie told her mother while focusing on her youngest child who was still reaching for her and whining. Steph hadn't even noticed the words exchanged between both her current and former lover.

"I don't know what's wrong with him. I came back from putting the cake away and he was bawling his eyes out." Steph's mother explained.

Linda's testimony caused Kurt to shift his eyes from his crying youngest son to Levesque. Angle couldn't help but wonder what Paul did to his son while he was the only adult on the back deck. He should have told his mother-in-law not to leave the baby alone with him, but would she take him seriously? Compared to the rest of Steph's family, Linda definitely had a higher opinion about Paul Levesque. She probably wouldn't believe him if he told her that he suspected Paul of pushing his son off of a couch several weeks ago, after all, even Steph didn't want to believe it about her ex.

"Come here to your daddy, little man. I want to hold both of my boys." Angle said with a loving smile as he let go of his daughter's hand and held the free arm out to signal for Linda to hand him his youngest child.

The moment Linda handed the baby over to his father; he let out a loud whine and arched his back in Stephanie's direction. Going to his father only made him that much closer to where his mommy was standing. He was getting upset that he wasn't being held by her.

"He loud, Dad." Kody commented placing his hands over his ears in an attempt to shield them from his little brother's crying.

Steph couldn't take it anymore; she hated seeing her youngest child crying for her attention. It was clear that all his crying and whining was because he wanted to be with her. In one quick swoop, she took him from her husband and into her own arms. Like magic, the one year old's crying immediately ceased.

"What was all that crying about, birthday boy, huh? Why weren't you happy staying with Granny or Daddy? Do you want Mommy to get you sick? That won't be good." Steph told her baby with the most energy and inflection that she had shown since she returned outside.

Aurora's eyes were focused right on her mommy. She was watching how much individual attention the baby was getting. Why didn't her mommy come over and get her from her daddy? After all, she was the first one who even called out for her mommy. Baby Andrew was only crying because he wanted her toy, that was no reason for her mommy to give him any special attention.

"Mommy, I want hugs too!" Aurora whined leaning out toward her mother, away from her father just like Andrew had done.

Great, why did both of her children want to cling to her while she obviously was sick with a stomach virus? If Aurora and Andrew came down with what she had, it would definitely be bad. Hell, it was bad enough for Stephanie who was a grown woman. She couldn't imagine her three and one year old dealing with it. Andy was a baby; she couldn't get around having close contact with him. Aurora Rose on the other hand, needed to stay in her daddy's arms. Hopefully with a clear explanation of the situation, she would understand and be a big girl.

"No, Aurora, stay with your daddy. Mommy doesn't feel good at all. I'm worried that whatever I have you could give it to you." Steph told her little girl to justify why she was going to hold her as well.

"Why Andy get hugs and not me?" The three year old asked in a whine.

Paul brought his face close to the side of his daughter's. His nose nestled into her brown locks of hair as whispered into her ear so that only she could hear what he had to say to her:

"See, Mommy loves Andy more because he's her new baby that replaces you. Just like Kurt is trying to replace Daddy."

His words caused Aurora to turn and look directly into her daddy's eyes. The little girl's blue eyes were immediately starting to glaze over with tears as she flashed her daddy a heart breaking look that showed just how perplexed she was with his assertion.

"It's okay, angel, Daddy loves you." Levesque said in a loud enough voice that he could be heard by the present company on the back deck. It was this claim that he wanted others to hear. After professing his love for his child, he pulled her into a hug which she gladly accepted.

Stephanie couldn't help but feel her heart melt with happiness at the sight of her ex-husband showing love to their little girl. Steph was sure that whatever he had whispered in their daughter's ear, it was worthy of a hug.

She had to hand it to Paul, he could go from one moment being in her mind, a selfish insensitive prick that needed a slap across the face, to the next, an adoring father who actually resembled the man she had fallen in love with. It was the sight of seeing Aurora being hugged tightly in her daddy's muscular arms that made her not regret inviting Levesque to the party in the first place. With all the family drama that had taken place earlier, it all well worth it to see her little girl bonding with her father.

"Paul? When did we get off the boat? Did you carry me?"

Levesque as well as everyone else on the back deck turned their attention to Barbie Blank who had awoken from her drunken induced sleep. She kept looking around before bringing her eyes back to Paul. It was obvious she didn't have any memory of staggering off the boat and passing out at the table on the back deck.

"I didn't carry you. You walked back here and passed out right where you are sitting." Paul replied back, explaining what he had thought to be the obvious.

Levesque rolled his eyes at his date before turning away so that she was no longer in his sight. The woman was a complete idiot with and without alcohol on board. Bringing her along as his date was definitely the biggest mistake he had made in a long time. She was like a splinter festering in his big toe; a small annoying nuisance that was had burrowed its way under the skin and was hard to remove. Too bad she didn't fall overboard during Vince's hell ride; he couldn't have gotten that lucky.

"Paul, I have the worst headache in the world. Can we just go get a hotel? I really need to lie down." Kelly Kelly whined in what sounded like a pouty voice of his three year old daughter and not a grown woman.

Steph couldn't help but cut her eyes at the twenty-two year old. Her behavior at Stephanie's son's first birthday was abominable. While Stephy would have considered herself to be a party girl in her early twenties, she could say without a shadow of a doubt that she would never have gotten smashed at a family birthday party for a one year old. That was definitely a new low. It made Stephanie cringe to think that this was a woman that Paul would actually bring around their child. It was like he was condoning her outrageous behavior. And now, worst of all, it looked like the brat was going to persuade him to leave just when Aurora was fully warming up to her father.

"I'm visiting with my daughter. It's your fault for drinking so damn much. Why don't you just use that finger pad that you call a cell phone, I know you have it on you since you were tapping on it the entire ride over here from the airport, and call yourself a cab." Paul finally told his date without even a glance over in her direction.

"But Paul, I don't have enough money for a cab back into the city! Cash doesn't fit well in the purse that goes with my dress! I only have my am-ex!" She whined back placing her hand on her forehead to brace herself up on the table.

"I'll give you the cash. Just make a call to a cab service. I'm sure you'll find one that will drive out here and take you to a hotel." Levesque retorted showing his frustration in his voice.

He was glad to pay her expensive cab fare if it meant getting Barbie Blank the hell away from him, Stephanie, and Aurora. She was bound to only cause problems and embarrass him. With her gone, hopefully, Paul could score some points with Stephanie to make up for his earlier screw up that had earned him a slap to the face.

Angle had set Kody down on his feet when the child had signaled that he wanted to be put down. Immediately Kody moved closer to Aurora, who had ran over and grabbed hold of her mother's leg as soon as her daddy had put her down.

"See who he chooses to bring around Aurora?" Kurt whispered into his wife's ear as he watched Paul allowing Kelly Kelly to lean on him for balance while going down the back deck stairs.

Her husband's comment caused Stephanie to look over at her ex-husband helping the young diva walk down the few wooden steps. She raised a single eyebrow while gazing on. Steph found herself entertaining thoughts of the young woman losing her balance and tumbling down the remaining steps to the sandy beach below. That was such an evil thought yet it was so satisfying to think.

She had made the phone call and after a good fifteen minutes had gone by, Paul thought it was time to have her out by the road to catch her cab. Levesque knew better than to cut through the beach house. With his luck, he would surely be subjected to McMahon who would gladly take time away from work to berate him. Barbie took each deck step one at a time, using the same leg to step down each one, while she held tightly onto Paul to keep her balance.

If he thought drudging through the sand around the perimeter of the beach house with Kelly Kelly was miserable when they first arrived, it was a thousand times worse for her departure. He basically had to drag her along; being in high heels was just too much for her to handle while in an inebriated state. Getting her in the cab and waving goodbye as it drove far away would be well worth the torture.


	37. Chapter 37

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-Seven

"No I will not have a teleconference! I want to deal with this problem in person, right now!" Vince yelled into his cellular phone while standing his study.

"I don't care if it's a weekend! If it was done right to begin with, I wouldn't have to be the one taking the time to fix it! The problem is, someone isn't doing his or her damn job and I have to leave my baby grandson's first birthday party and fly back to Connecticut to do the job myself!" McMahon screamed slamming his fist down firmly on his desk.

"Yes, you better hope it gets fixed before I get to the office! It's your job on the line too because you're in charge of the department!" Vince continued. His eyes darted to the window in the study that happened to be on the side of the house. He caught sight of Paul and Barbie slowly making their way to the front of the house. Thank God Linda had told him to hit the pike.

"Shut up and do your job! I'm leaving right now and taking the corporate jet back to Connecticut! If it isn't worked out when I get there, I'm cracking skulls!" McMahon threatened. Before his employee could attempt to reply, he ended the call and threw the phone into one of the nearby leather chairs.

All in a huff, Vince snatched his phone from the chair and quickly made his way to the back of the beach house where the sliding glass doors connected the home to the back deck. With his booming voice he informed his family that he had to leave.

"Don't feel guilty about leaving, Dad. You were here to sing "Happy Birthday", that's the most important part. We're just going to hang out with the kids the rest of the night. I'll probably try and lie down and get some rest." Steph told her father.

"You do that, sweetheart. I hope you feel better. We can't afford you getting sick. This company needs you." McMahon replied back before giving his daughter a quick hug.

"Gramps will see you again soon, birthday boy. And I'll see you soon too, little princess." Vince said in the sweetest grandfather voice he could muster.

Aurora cut her little eyes and turned her face away from her grandfather's gaze. She hadn't forgotten how mean Grandpa was being to her daddy. She didn't understand why her granddad had been hollering at her dad. It wasn't just confusing, it was scary to her. McMahon's booming voice could be quite terrifying to a three year old.

"You pretty like a pwincess, Rora." Kody commented with a smirk and an eyebrow raise. He had leaned closer to his stepsister who was still hugging her mother's leg to make sure she had taken notice of his compliment.

The little boy's assessment caused Aurora to return a shy smile. While Kyra was an older kid that made her feel a little uneasy because of their confrontation earlier, Kody was being nothing but nice to her. She liked him.

After he finished saying his goodbyes to his family, Vince, with his work satchel in hand, made his way out to the three car garage. It was when he opened one of the garage doors to drive his corvette to the private airstrip that he saw Paul crouching next to Kelly Kelly. The diva was leaning up against the rental car that they had arrived in. What were they still doing there? At least the rental car wasn't blocking his exit for it was parked on the other side of the driveway.

"Why the hell are you still loitering on my property? Hit the road, Levesque!" McMahon shouted out the window of his high performance car as it rolled in reverse down the driveway.

Vince was such an asshole. It took every ounce of self control for Paul not to shoot his middle finger up at his former father-in-law. Sure the guy deserved the gesture but in the long run he would certainly be the one to pay the price for it. It was best for him just to stay calm, let the old bastard leave, and then send Barbie off in a taxi cab.

With the sound of squealing tires and a puff of smoke, the black corvette had a surge of acceleration and sped off. McMahon didn't even seem to give him a backward glance. Perhaps he thought he had put him in his place by simply barking the demand for him to leave. It didn't matter; Vince and Shane were both now gone. The only single remaining thorn in Levesque's side was Angle.

Only a moment or so after Vince's departure, a typical yellow taxi cab pulled up in front of the beach house.

"Come on, your cab's here. It's time to get up and leave." Paul told the young woman who was still sitting next to his rental car and had not made an attempt to get up when she saw the cab was there. She was still feeling the effects of all the alcohol she drank and had needed to sit down once they got to the drive way.

"I just need to sit here for a little while longer. Just give me a few minutes." Barbie insisted waving her hand in Paul's direction like she was shooing him away.

Levesque wasn't going to have any of it. He was tired of Kelly Kelly's ongoing drama that had started up the moment he had brought her to the party. Paul was just ready for her to leave. With one quick motion, he bent over, put his muscular arms behind her back and under her legs, and lifted her up.

"Oh Paul!" She screeched out in surprise not expecting him to pick her up.

"Oh, I wasn't expecting you to carry me. This is nice. You're so strong." She said in a drunken yet seductive voice placing her hand on Paul's face.

"Open the door, would you?" Paul said through gritted teeth to the taxi driver while at the same time he moved his face away from her hand. He didn't want her touching him.

The driver quickly did as he was told and Levesque let the young woman plop down on the backseat of the taxi cab. The moment the young woman was in the cab, her head leaned back and she then slumped over in the seat. It was probably the air conditioning in the cab that caused her to fall back asleep.

"Just load up her crap I have sitting out here by the curb, stick the seatbelt on her and take her to the nearest hotel. This should cover the fare." Paul muttered shoving a wod of cash in the driver's hand.

With the payment given, Levesque was quick to walk away from his again comatose date and rejoin his daughter, ex-wife, and her family on the back deck. He didn't even give a backward glance as he heard the car's engine soon start up and pull away.

"You could have left the same time your date did." Angle told Paul the moment he noticed him returning up the back deck stairs.

"Yeah I guess I could have but wouldn't I be a bad father if I didn't come back to at least say good bye to my daughter? Unlike you, Angle, I don't ignore my child just because she doesn't live under my roof anymore." Levesque retorted with a jerk of his chin in the direction of Kyra and Kody who were standing by their father.

"You going bye- bye, Daddy? You not stay wif me?" Aurora questioned aloud expressing her sadness from hearing of her father's impending departure. She didn't understand why her father had to go but Andrew's daddy stayed with her and mommy all the time.

The small child's words caught her grandmother's attention. Vince was now gone and heading back to Connecticut. There being plenty of room in the plush vacation home, and the thought of inviting Aurora's father to stay overnight seemed like a nice gesture, not just for Paul, but for her grandchild as well.

"I have to go, sweetheart. I wasn't invited to stay overnight like you and Mommy were."

Linda eyes shifted from her granddaughter, to her former son-in-law, and then finally settled on her daughter, Stephanie. Steph had been watching her mother's reaction to both Paul and Aurora's words. She understood her mother's unspoken thought process. And now it looked like her mom was subtly asking her to weigh in on the matter even in her weakened state. After only a short moment of pondering, Stephanie shrugged her shoulders and gave a slight nod to signal that she was alright with her ex staying over at the beach house to spend more time with his daughter.

"Paul, you are more than welcome to stay in one of the guest bedrooms overnight. I know how thick the traffic is in the city where all the hotels are. Staying over would allow you to spend more time with Aurora." Linda finally offered aloud to Levesque.

Angle couldn't help but roll his eyes after hearing his mother-in-law's invitation for Paul to stay over. Kurt knew that if Vince was still there at the beach house, she would never have proposed this. The guy wasn't a part of the McMahon family anymore. He was lucky enough to even be invited to the party. What was next? Was Steph going to invite him to come home with them to their home in Connecticut, for him to "spend more time with Aurora"? That is what they loved to call it. Angle knew what it really was. It was his way trying to get closer to Stephanie.

Levesque was now looking directly at Kurt. He must have taken noticed of how frustrated Angle seemed to be with Linda's proposal. It made Paul smile wide. He loved seeing Kurt miserable and stifled. There was no way the he was going to speak out against Linda's decision, certainly not if he wanted to keep up his façade of being a picture perfect husband. It was nice to see him squirming for a change.

"That's really sweet of you to offer a guest room. Are you sure it wouldn't be an inconvenience?"

Levesque already knew what the answer to his question was going to be, but he knew to ask it anyway. He was trying to put his best foot forward in demonstrating to both Stephanie and Linda that he was gracious and courteous. Those two traits, after all, were ones that he portrayed constantly when he had been courting Steph before they were even dating.

"Really laying the bullshit on thick isn't he?" Kurt muttered to his wife, not able to keep his anger at bay.

His comment caused Stephanie to shoot her husband a dirty look. The cold stare was not only for cursing but for making a generally hateful comment aloud when her ex was being on his best behavior for the good of their daughter. Aurora was making such strides in warming up to her daddy. Steph would be really pissed at her husband if he would be responsible for derailing her daughter's progress.

"Don't be silly, you know that there is plenty of room. It's not like you will be putting anyone out. So are you going to stay?" Linda asked again with a gracious smile.

"Stay! Stay Daddy! Stay!" Aurora exclaimed jumping up and down in front of Paul like she was making his decision for him. She was smiling because of the prospect of her father staying at her grandparents' beach house overnight.

"Well it looks like my baby girl decided for me. Let me just go get my piece of luggage from my rental car." Paul commented after he lovingly touched his little girl's face.

"You're really not buying this 'father knows best' crap, are you?" Angle asked his wife in what was somewhat of an intense whisper with the hope of not being heard by Aurora.

"Stop it, he is being on his best behavior with his daughter. Can you please just take your son? I think he needs a change. I'm feeling sick again so I'm going to go lay down in our guest room." Stephanie informed her husband with a hint of anger before leaning toward him with their child so that he could take him from her.

"All right, fine. I'll watch the kids, go get some rest." Kurt replied accepting his son so that his wife could go inside.

He could tell his wife wasn't going to believe him about Levesque. If anything, trying to convince her about Paul's real intentions was just getting her mad at him. Angle didn't want that. It would just become another instance where Paul Levesque was causing problems in their marriage.

"Where's Steph?" Paul immediately asked aloud the moment Linda followed by Kurt and all the kids came inside the beach house because of a down pour that had come out of nowhere mere moments after Levesque had brought his luggage inside.

"My wife is resting upstairs. Don't bother her, she's still feeling sick. Visit with your child, that is after all why you are still here, right?" Angle quickly retorted before Linda could even reply about her daughter's whereabouts.

"What we do now? It's raining outside at the beach, look!" Aurora then commented pointing a finger out toward the sliding glass door where they had just entered from.

"I'm sure Granny can put on a good movie for you, Kyra, and Kody. I have to change Andrew, then I will be back to watch it with you guys." Angle told his stepdaughter with a kind smile.

The moment Kurt left the room with the baby, Linda began to list off the few children's movie she had at the beach house for the occasions when her grandchildren visited. The three children unanimously voted to watch "Finding Nemo". Paul took a seat with his daughter on his lap while Kyra and Kody sat on the other side of the sofa.

"Can we have a slumber party in here?" Kyra asked Linda as she put her arm around her little brother who was too enthralled with the movie to even notice.

"It's okay with me, but you'll have to ask your dad when he comes back from changing Andrew."

"Sounds okay to me, you still have that blow up mattress, don't you, Mom? I could set it up in here for all three kids." Angle offered coming back into the living room with a freshly changed Andrew in his arms.

"Yes I do, it's on the top shelf of the hall closet. If you want to go get it, I'll go grab some fresh linen to put on the mattress." Linda replied getting up from where she was seated.

"Daddy, can I hold baby Andy?" Kyra asked her father with her arms stretched out toward her youngest brother.

"Sure you can, but he may not want to stay on your lap. You can watch him for me while I set up the mattress." Kurt answered back as he gently placed his one year old in his daughter's lap. He and Linda then left the living room to get the bed sheets and air mattress.

"Hi little baby, I'm your big sister." Kyra Marie said in a sweet voice as she petted her half brother's head with her hand. Andrew let out a happy squeal and smiled at his older sibling.

Aurora took in a deep breath and exhaled sharply from where she sat at the other end of the long sofa. She didn't understand why Kyra was telling Andrew that she was his big sister. Her mommy always gave her that title. Why wasn't Kurt, Andrew's daddy, correcting her? She was the one who had always helped her mommy take care of the baby, not Kyra.

"See, Kyra is the baby's big sister, not you." Paul whispered softly in his daughter's ear and then gave her a kiss on her cheek causing Aurora's bottom lip to protrude due to sadness.

When Angle returned he was able to quickly set up and inflate the mattress. The moment the last bit of air filled it, Kody pounced onto it with full force from the sofa like he was pretending he was a ferocious lion that was complete with a growl and playful roar. His father decided to join in on the three year old's play by getting on the made bed so that he could tickle him. Kody began to howl with laughter as he weakly fought back the tickling with his hands and feet.

"Look, Daddy's getting Kody!" Kyra exclaimed with excitement as she pointed for her youngest brother to see.

"I'm going to get you too, Kyra and Andy!" Kurt said in his best monster voice before turning his attention to his two other children.

Both Andrew and Kyra were both belly laughing the moment Angle swooped both of them up in his arms and then fell back with them onto the mattress. Linda was even chuckling a bit while observing her son-in-law playing with all three of his children.

"Aurora, no, stay here with Daddy, let's watch the movie." Levesque told his child when his three year old made an attempt to leave her seat that was right next to him.

"But I can pway, I'm always alloweded to pway at home." Aurora whined folding her arms in a huff.

Aurora Rose looked quite disappointed that she wasn't allowed to partake in the fun that all of the Angle children were having. Even the baby was allowed to participant in the fun and was laughing and climbing on his daddy. She had always been able to play with Kurt, in fact, it was usually just him and her rough housing since Andy was a baby.

Paul could tell his little girl was unhappy with staying him on the couch but he didn't care. He refused to let his little girl bond any further with Angle. She had no business being over there with his kids. He wasn't even sold on the idea of letting her sleep on the inflated mattress with them. But how could he tell Aurora no now in front of Linda? How would that look if Aurora began to pitch a fit? Levesque just hoped that the kids would just fall asleep soon so that he didn't have to continue to watch Kurt Angle's "perfect father" routine. It was sickening.

After what seemed like forever to Paul, all four of the children were finally asleep. Kyra was asleep on one end of the bed, her brother, Kody, in the middle, and Aurora was on the other side, closest to where her daddy was still sitting. Linda was the first adult to leave the living room for bed. Then Angle, with his sleeping one year old in his arms, was the next to stand up to leave.

"I guess you're sleeping down here with the kids? Steph and I will be in bed upstairs if you need us." Angle whispered with a smirk without even looking back at Paul before walking out of the living room toward the staircase.

Typical Kurt just had to have the last word. He really reveled in rubbing in the fact that he was the one sleeping in Stephanie's bed. He was wrong about one thing; Paul wasn't going to be sleeping in the living room with the children. Levesque just wasn't ready to retire to his appointed guest room just yet.

Kurt moved cautiously through the dark upstairs hallway. He was being extra careful in his navigation to his and Stephanie's guest room so as to not wake up the sleeping baby he was holding. He was a bit surprised to find their guest room dimly lit by light coming from the guest bathroom that was connected to the room. The bed was empty; Steph had obviously been in it but had left. She was probably still throwing up. Taking advantage of the semi-illuminated room, Angle was able to put Andrew down in his pack and play with ease before going to the bathroom to check on Stephanie.

There was his wife lying on the bathroom tile floor right in front of the toilet. She appeared to be asleep on her side facing the toilet in her pajama shorts and top.

"Stephy, babe, you okay?" Angle asked in a caring whisper the moment he crouched down and brushed Stephanie's hair away from her face.

Her eyes opened the moment she felt his touch on her face. She slightly lifted her head from the bathroom floor and peered up to see her husband. She didn't know what time it was or how long she had been passed out in the bath room. She only remembered getting out of bed and running to the toilet just in time. She had wretched and heaved so much that her abdominal muscles felt like she had completed over one hundred crunches. And finally, when the nausea had subsided, she had fallen asleep right there on the floor.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I'm really thirsty." Steph muttered through a raspy voice as she sat up.

Without hesitation, Angle quickly got up from his crouching position and walked over to the sink. He grabbed a glass that happened to be sitting by the faucet already and promptly filled it with cold water before giving it to his wife. Patiently, Kurt watched Stephanie gulp down the water as if it was her first drink of the whole day. She must have really been parched.

"Do you think we need to take you to the emergency room? If you can't keep anything down, you're going to get dehydrated."

"No, I'll be okay. It's just a stomach bug, probably got it at the office." Steph replied between gulps.

"Are the kids asleep? Where's the baby?" She then asked the moment she had drank the last bit of water.

"The kids are all downstairs in the living room on the inflated mattress and Andrew is asleep in the playpen by the bed. Come on, let's go to bed. You shouldn't be sleeping in the bathroom." Angle whispered to her so that he wouldn't wake the baby. He then kissed her forehead after taking the drinking glass from her.

"No, you go ahead to bed. I know I'm not going to be able to sleep now. I'm going to go get some air on the back deck." Stephanie told her husband as she slowly got to her feet.

"Do you want me to go with you?" Angle offered placing the glass back down where he had found it on the vanity countertop.

"No honey, you go ahead and get some sleep. I'm just going to sit outside for a bit and then I'll come to bed." She told him with a weak smile before quietly sneaking out of the guest room without waking up her sleeping child.

Stephanie tried to be as quiet as she could in respect of her mother and ex-husband who she thought were already asleep in their respective rooms. After descending the stairs, she followed the hallway that lead to the living room where the children were asleep. The television was turned off and each of the three children was sound asleep under the light covers. Carefully, Steph opened the sliding glass door to let herself onto the back deck without waking up the kids.

"Hey, you're up late. Feeling any better?"

The voice that broke the soothing sound of the ocean caused Steph to jump in place the moment after she had closed the sliding door. She whipped around to see her ex-husband sitting nearby in one of the lounge chairs.

"A little, thanks. I thought I'd come out here to get some of the ocean air. It's always so nice at night. Why are you still up? " She asked coming back with a question of her own as she ventured toward the lounge chair that was next to the one Paul was in.

"I'm not really ready to call it a night. I actually wanted to go up and check on you but with Angle already up there, I decided against it. I figured you had all the drama you could handle today." Levesque explained while turning his head to focus on his former wife.

"Yeah, you're right, I have. Thanks for being concerned about me." She quickly replied leaning back in the chair and folding her arms in front of her chest.

"I was also hoping for an opportunity to apology to you. I'm sorry about that crude comment I made about you and Angle earlier. I was angry and was out of line to say it in front of your family and the kids." Paul said with his voice full of sincerity.

His apology caused Steph to turn her head and look directly at him for the first time during this night encounter. She looked surprised, her eyes wide in reaction to his words that seemed heartfelt and genuine. Paul was actually owning his mistakes and trying to make amends for them? He was sounding like the man she had fallen in love with in the first place. It was calming and soothing to her, just as much as the sea breeze.

"I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have slapped you. If anyone deserved to be slapped today, it was my dad. He really goes overboard sometimes."

"Sometimes?" Levesque asked with a smirk and an eyebrow raise.

His remark caused both Stephanie and himself to start laughing in unison. Hearing her distinct laughter again was like seeing the ghost of a dearly missed loved one. He could hardly remember the last time he had made her laugh. Early on in their marriage, he was able to do it so effortlessly. He knew that his humor was one of the qualities that had made her fall in love with him in the first place. If only it would work a second time.

"I'm really glad you came to the party. You don't know how much it means to me to see Aurora and you bonding again." Steph told him with a warm smile while leaning over the side of the lounge chair so that she could speak to him more directly.

"I'm happy I did too. I'm really thankful that you decided to come out here tonight. You don't know how rare it is for me to steal a few moments alone with you. I forgot how easy it was for us to talk civil without all of life's interruptions. It makes me think back to before we had Aurora and things were good between us."

Stephanie let out a long exhale and her eyes diverted down to the wooden deck. She thought back to the many weekends they had spent together on that very back deck as a couple. Not only had they been civil to one another back then but they actually cared about each other and were thoughtful of each other's feelings. Who's to say they couldn't have that again, especially for their daughter?

"Things can still be good between us." She told him focusing back on his face. Steph flashed another smile and gently placed her hand on his to further drive home her sincerity.

"I'd like that. I want us to move forward. I think Aurora would want that too. I'd be lying if I said that a night goes by without me thinking back to how things were before it got bad between us. I just wish Aurora could remember that time; that she could remember us as a family." Paul said in almost a whisper.

"We're still a family…" Steph quickly replied back before she brought her hand up to former husband's face. Her finger tips ran over the neat edges of his beard. It had been a while since she had touched a man's face that wasn't clean shaven. She had forgotten how much she loved a man with a beard.

Levesque couldn't help but close his eyes as he felt her gentle touch against his skin. He was savoring it, remembering when she was his. And just when he thought it couldn't get any better, he felt her lips gently touch his cheek. She was kissing him, well, not his lips but still it was a kiss; one that he hadn't requested but had been freely given to him.

Unfortunately, as soon as the kiss happened, it was over, and by the time Paul had opened his eyes, she was not only back to her neutral position in the chair but was getting up from it.

"I need to try and get some sleep. Sleep is probably going to be the only thing that will get me over this stomach bug. Have a good night." She said before managing to get up.

"Good night." Levesque replied back with a weak smile as his hazel eyes followed her to the sliding doors where she then disappeared inside of the beach house leaving him by himself on the back deck.

Paul couldn't believe what had just taken place between them. Stephanie had admitted in her own words that there was still hope for them by saying that they were still a family. And if that wasn't enough, she had kissed him. It was all the encouragement he needed to continue his pursuit of getting her back. The only problem facing him at the moment was how he was going to get some sleep.


	38. Chapter 38

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copyrighted to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Sleep and Paul had finally found each other well after two in the morning. He had retired to his assigned guest room over an hour after Stephanie had left him on the back deck. No matter how comfortable he was in the bed, his mind had been relentlessly racing. Levesque kept playing his encounter with his ex-wife, over and over again in his head. Thoughts of what he could have done different, if he should have gave her a kiss of his own, if there was still hope for them. Those thoughts were all plaguing him. Levesque didn't even remember falling asleep, but he must have because he awoke to daylight in his room and the sound of the bedroom door opening.

"Hey, I'm sorry to wake you."

Paul let a grunt escape him before giving his head a slight shake as if he was literally trying to shake away his sleepiness. He then used his elbows to prop up his upper body, lifting his head off his pillow so that he could see his morning greeter.

Of course he didn't need to look to see it was Stephanie. He knew her voice from anywhere. It was the voice he wanted to wake up to every morning. And she looked absolutely beautiful in the morning light casting from the bedroom windows. Perhaps she was feeling a bit better because she was greeting him with a warm smile.

"It's fine, it's nice to have a wake-up call, much nicer than an alarm clock. You look like you're feeling better." Levesque answered back with a smile of his own.

"I'm okay for right now; it comes and goes in waves. I came in here to let you know that Kurt and I are leaving to go back to Connecticut in less than an hour. I thought you might want to spend some time with Aurora before we take off."

"Thanks for the heads up. Let me just throw on some clothes and I'll be down stairs." Paul told her swinging his legs over the edge of the bed.

The only article of clothing he had on was his briefs but that didn't stop him from leaving the covers. He was hoping that Steph was checking out both his muscular frame as well as his semi raised package. She was definitely the cause of that.

"Okay, great." Steph said with a smile before she turned to walk out of the guest room.

"You know you don't have to leave the room for me to get changed. It's not like you haven't seen me naked before." Chuckled Paul before he gave a wink and flashed a naughty smile the moment Steph stopped and turned back around to face him.

Stephanie couldn't help but let out a hearty laugh. Levesque was famous for inserting humor into a conversation when she least expected it. She loved humor, especially when it could lift her spirits on days she wasn't feeling well.

"Excuse me, I'm a married woman." Steph replied with a bit of attitude that was reminiscent of her days of portraying Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley.

She even held up her left hand to display her wedding ring as she spoke. On her face was her signature evil smile that she had perfected while playing the bad girl in her twenties on television.

Paul hated looking at that wedding ring. It was bad enough whenever he accidentally caught a glance of it on his love's finger, but to have her hold it up to him, flaunting it in his face, that was much worse. He couldn't help envisioning taking that big diamond ring and chucking it as hard and as far as he could into the Florida waters.

"We'll see you down stairs." Steph added the moment she let her left hand fall back to her side. A smile was flashed again and then she walked out.

* * *

"Is he coming down to say goodbye to his daughter or what?" Kurt asked the moment his wife rejoined him downstairs where he was getting his two older children ready to leave.

"Yeah, he'll be down in a few minutes. I woke him up."

"Daddy, can Kody and I go look at the ocean one more time before we leave?" Asked Kyra, interjecting in the adults' conversation.

"You can go as far as the bottom step of the deck. The sand is off limits. I don't want you guys near the water unsupervised." He told his only daughter.

Kyra nodded with a smile to let her father know that she understood the limitations he had placed on her and her brother. Holding Kody's hand, she ran sliding door, opened it, and ventured outside. As soon as the sliding door slammed shut and the Angles were alone in the kitchen, Angle resumed the conversation with his wife:

"Figures that he'd still be asleep, he'd rather pretend that he was staying in a bed and breakfast than here to spend time with his daughter."

Her husband's comment caused Steph to let out a strong exhale as she braced herself over the kitchen counter. She closed her eyes only for a moment before shooting a look of disappointment at him. She was feeling one of the first waves of nausea of the day and really didn't need smart ass comments.

"You okay?" Angle asked narrowing his brow before placing a hand on Stephanie's back to show his support for her.

"I'm fighting to hold down what little I ate this morning, I really don't need your sophomoric comments about Paul. Keep them to yourself." Steph muttered in retort while moving away from his touch.

"Mommy, I got dressed all by myself! Look at me!" Aurora announced aloud to her mother the moment she ran into the kitchen.

Stephanie's eyes instinctively shifted to her three year old. It took her only seconds to notice that the light blue sun dress that Aurora had put on all by herself was on her backwards. Still, the little girl looked to be as pleased as punch with her independence.

"Wow, you're such a big girl. Let Mommy help you just a little bit." Steph told her daughter moving forward to help her turn her dress around without having to take it off. She had Aurora pull each arm back into her dress and then she twisted it over her body so that it was finally on right.

"Uh oh, did someone have a wardrobe malfunction?" Paul joked with a smile to let everyone know that he had just arrived downstairs.

"Aurora's dress was just a little turned around, Daddy. I'm sure she would love for you to help her put her sandals on." Steph suggested giving her ex a smile that was inviting him to spend some one on one time with their child.

"I want my seekers, Mommy, not sandals." Said Aurora, correcting her mother.

"Sweetie, it's hot outside, I think you would be more comfortable in your sandals." Steph suggested to her little girl with a smile.

"No! I want my seekers!"

"Let her wear her sneakers if she wants to. Go get your sneakers and a pair of socks and Daddy will help you put them on."

A great big smile formed on Aurora's face after hearing her father's words in her favor. As quick as she could, the little girl ran to fetch a pair of socks and her beloved sneakers that she was so set on wearing.

"Here we are, Mommy, all nice and clean!" Linda announced carrying her grandson, Andrew, in her arms. Andy, like his granny, was all smiles and wrapped in a white towel.

"Did you like having Granny give you a bath? Were you a good boy for her?" Steph asked in a sweet voice as her mother approached with her baby.

"He's always such a joy, Stephanie, such a happy little guy. I brought him downstairs because I didn't know if you wanted to get him dressed. If you're still feeling poorly, Kurt or I could do it." Linda offered with a kind smile.

"No, I'm okay. I'll take care of him." Steph replied holding her arms out to accept baby Andrew.

While the queasy feeling never left her, Stephanie was adamant about stepping up as a parent and taking care of her son. Her mother was nice enough to give the one year old a bath, now it was her turn to take over. Sure she could let her husband have baby duty, but he had his two other children to look after.

"Where you going?" Aurora Rose asked her mother as she passed her and her half brother on the way back with her shoes.

"I'm taking Andy upstairs to get dressed. Go with your daddy, he'll help you get your sneakers on."

Reluctantly, Aurora did as her mother instructed. It wasn't that she was apprehensive about spending time with her father; she was warming up to him and the idea that he was her very own daddy. She was unhappy with the idea of the baby getting all of Mommy's attention while she had to be left behind in the care of her dad. Maybe Daddy was right, maybe Mommy really did favor baby Andrew more than her.

"There we are, almost done, just have to tie both shoes." Reported Paul after he had gotten both socks and shoes on Aurora, all that was left was to tie the pink shoe laces.

"No, take them off! It's not comfy cozy! It's not right!" The princess whined kicking her feet sharply out of her father's grasp.

"What do you mean that it isn't right? There's only one way to put shoes on." Levesque replied sounding a tad exasperated with his daughter's bratty outburst.

"Andy's daddy knows how to put my seekers on! I want him to do it!" Aurora commanded crossing her arms in a huff.

Paul felt his stomach instinctively twist and turn into a knot. Hearing his little girl's sweet little voice dismissing him and wanting Angle felt just as bad if not worse than all the times she had called Kurt her father in the past. What possible method could he have to put her sneakers on her that was so different? This was bullshit.

"She is really particular about her feet feeling good in her shoes. All right, little girl, let's get these sneakers feeling comfy cozy." Kurt said with a smirk as he walked over to where Aurora was sitting.

Without saying a word, Paul scooted over from where he was knelt in from of his daughter and Angle took his place where he had been. Now crouching in front of her, Kurt removed both sneakers from her feet.

Levesque just watched Angle interacting with his daughter. How would he object to Kurt stepping in? His own little girl had beckoned him. She preferred him for this task over her own father. And why? It was because Angle knew more about the three year old than he did. It didn't matter that she wasn't calling Kurt her daddy anymore; she still preferred Angle to play the role of Daddy. That killed Paul.

Aurora Rose was smiling at Kurt, seemingly satisfied with his shoe applying technique. When the three year old's foot began to slide inside of the shoe, Angle rocked the sneaker back and forth with one hand, while the other hand pulled on the tongue of the shoe. Then, when the shoe was fully on her foot, Kurt adjusted her sock pulling it taut to removal any possible sock creases inside the sneaker.

"Comfy cozy, Princess?" Kurt asked, pausing before he was set to tie the sneaker.

"Yeah it is, thank you." Aurora answered back in her best polite voice.

A muffed ringtone was heard from Angle's back pocket while he was tying the sneaker. The moment he finished tying, he reached behind him and grabbed his cell phone.

"Think you're qualified to finish up? I've got to take this." Kurt asked Paul with a chuckle after he took a second to look at his cell phone's caller id.

Paul rolled his eyes. He was glad that Angle was going to leave him and Aurora alone. Thank God for the phone call, it was the alert Kurt needed to get his focus back on his own matters instead of Levesque's.

"All right, Aurora, let's see if Daddy can master the art of comfy cozy footwear."

Angle waited to answer his ringing cell phone after he had stepped onto the back deck and closed the sliding glass door behind him. He took in a sharp breath before answering the call.

"I was wondering when you were going to call." He said in a somewhat dull tone of voice with no sign of enthusiasm.

"Well you can stop wondering, because here I am calling, how are my babies?"

"Kyra and Kody are fine, Karen. Thank God they got here safely after a flight down here by themselves. I guess going on a cruise with Jeff Jarrett was more important than making sure our two children got to Florida safely." Angle answered back. His conversation on the back deck caused Kyra and Kody to come up the steps toward him.

"Oh please, it's a weekend TNA Wrestling coastal cruise. It's a fan interaction event for Jeff's wrestling company. And the kids were fine. Children fly by themselves every day that's why there are stewards and stewardesses. Can you put my children on the phone now please?"

"Yeah, hang on." Kurt muttered into the cell phone before he approached his kids.

"It's your mom." He told his daughter as he handed her the phone. He gave his little girl a weak smile, not wanting her to pick up on how unhappy he was with her mother.

"Hi Mom." Kyra said into the phone with a smile.

* * *

"Are you having fun with Daddy, Aurora?" Asked Stephanie the moment she came back downstairs with Andrew perched on her right hip.

"Oh yeah, we're having lots of fun. I had a crash course in the comfy cozy test. How long have you and Kurt been playing that game?" Paul questioned shaking his head with a hint of a smile on his face.

"Oh, Kurt started that with her months ago. He is always spoiling her." Steph explained as sat little Andrew on his feet in the living room so that she could start collecting the baby toys that were scattered around close by.

"That wasn't something constructive to teach her. You wait until you're in a hurry to get somewhere and her shoes aren't 'comfy cozy' on her feet. That's ridiculous. If I were spending more time with her, she wouldn't be pulling that crap." Levesque said with a sneer while his eyes followed Andy who toddled to the sofa to brace himself.

"Well if you want to spend more time with her, why don't you take her home to Connecticut with you? I'm still feeling under the weather and Kurt and I have three other kids to look after. You could spend today and tomorrow with her and then bring her home Tuesday before you leave for the SmackDown tapings." Steph suggested packing the toys into a duffle bag.

"That sounds great to me. What do you think, Aurora, want to come home with Daddy?" Levesque asked his daughter.

"Can Mommy come too?" She was quickly asked back without hesitation.

Paul wanted to answer truthfully to his daughter. He wanted Stephanie to come with them just as much, if not more, than Aurora did. He would love for his family to be complete again. As he caught himself day dreaming about the idea of Steph coming home with him, Stephanie answered Aurora's question:

"No sweetie, Mommy is going to stay home with the baby, Kurt, and his kids who are visiting us. It's just going to be you and Daddy, okay?"

The three year old's little face quickly contorted into a look of dismay and she quickly began to shake her head back and forth. She wasn't happy with the idea of not being able to have her mommy with her.

"I wanna be with you." Aurora whimpered as the little droplets of tears began to fall from her eyes. Her arms stretched out toward Stephanie, as if there was any doubt to which parent she was referring to.

"Oh sweetie, come here," whispered Steph in a soft soothing voice before she took Aurora into her arms for a big hug. "Listen, you're going to have so much fun with your very own daddy. You get to play with lots of exciting toys that you won't have to share with any one at Daddy's house. And you'll have your daddy all to yourself."

Stephanie knew her daughter. She knew that the prospect of having an abundance of toys without having to share any of them would be right up Aurora's alley. And now that her little girl knew that she had her very own Daddy to spend time with, Steph was sure that she would have fun with him. It was all about getting over the fact that her mother couldn't come with her.

"Okay…" Aurora muttered through her tears as she hugged her mommy tightly. She still didn't understand why her mother couldn't come with her to stay with her daddy since she always stayed with baby Andy's daddy.

* * *

It didn't take the Angles long to get everyone's luggage together. When the company car arrived, Steph quickly took charge getting the three children buckled up in the car while Kurt and the driver worked on loading the many bags and suitcases into the trunk of the limo as if they were playing a skillful game of Tetris.

"Okay sweetie, it's time for all of us to go home to Connecticut. I'll call you as soon as we get home, okay? You're going to have so much fun with your dad. I love you!" Steph told her three year old with enthusiasm and a great big smile before she hugged her.

Aurora gave her mommy one last long hug and a kiss before she watched her climb into the limo with Kurt and the other children. When the driver closed the door, Steph made a point to quickly roll down the tinted window to wave goodbye.

"Have a safe trip!" Linda called out waving to her daughter as the limousine began to slowly pull away.

Despite the fact that Aurora knew she was still with her granny and daddy, she couldn't help but feel like she was being left behind. Why was she the only kid who her mommy left behind? Why couldn't she come home with them?

When the black limo disappeared around the street corner, Aurora's composure followed suit and the tears began to flow.

"Why couldn't I go home with my mommy? I wanna go home too!" Aurora cried out as the tears ran down her face again. This time, her mommy wasn't there to wipe them away.

Linda's heart completely broke in two at the sight of her one and only little granddaughter weeping her heart out for her mother. Before Paul could even attempt to comfort his child, Mrs. McMahon swooped in and scooped up her grandchild.

"This wasn't how I wanted us to start our time together." Paul confessed to his former mother-in-law before he reached over to rub his little girl's back while Linda rocked her in her arms.

"It's okay, she'll be fine. Why don't you go ahead and get Aurora and your things loaded into your rental car while I take care of her."

Levesque gave Linda a nod and slowly walked back to the beach house to get ready for his and Aurora's departure. If Paul would have been thinking ahead, he would have suggested to Steph that he and Aurora leave first before she did. The idea of little Aurora leaving for a fun two days with Daddy with Mommy waving goodbye in the drive way would have been a much more pleasant goodbye for Aurora than her having to watch her mommy leave.

There was no reason to dwell on it. It was done and Steph was gone, leaving their daughter in his care. Paul could only focus on the rest of his time with his little girl. He knew that he was going to need to make the most of his time with her. After all, when the visit was over, Aurora was going to be reporting back to her mommy. Surely nothing would make Stephanie happier to find out that Aurora had a great time with him, her real Daddy.


	39. Chapter 39

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Thirty-Nine

"These all mine?"

Aurora had asked that same question several times in the last hour as she poured over each and every toy in the room her father had made for her. While this wasn't the first time she had spent the night at her daddy's home, it was certainly the first time she cared to explore her room there.

"They're all yours, sweetheart. These are your toys at Daddy's house." Paul explained with a smile. He couldn't help but find enjoyment in seeing his daughter pulling out each and every toy from her pink and yellow toy box to examine it.

They had arrived home in Connecticut in the late afternoon. Stephanie had kept her promise to Aurora and called to talk to her. Levesque immediately began to worry that talking to her mommy would made the three year old want to leave and go back with her. Surprisingly, it had the opposite effect. Whatever Stephanie had said to their child had perked her right up. Aurora was quite the little ball of energy. Paul had made them a late lunch of peanut butter and jelly and they had spent the rest of the afternoon playing together in the back yard.

And now, as the day was drawing to a close, Paul began to worry that their fun time together was going to sour as soon as bedtime came. The only successful over night that Aurora had spent with him was with the help of Torrie Wilson. Now he was on his own.

"Hey Aurora, how would you like a surprise before bedtime?" Levesque asked his daughter while getting up from the carpet floor.

"Is it a present?" She asked with her voice full of excitement; The prospect of a surprise gift that would be just for her caused her to turn her attention away from the toy box and onto her father.

"Well it's something Daddy put together especially for you. You have to close your eyes to get it."

Aurora let out a little giggle bringing her hands to her face. Her little palms cupped over her eyes while she smiled. As she heard her daddy moving in the room, she couldn't help but slide her fingers apart to peek out at him.

"Hey, no peeking!" Levesque warned with a chuckle as he stopped momentarily waiting for his little girl to hide her eyes adequately.

The three year old let out a squeal of laughter and let herself flop down on her belly onto the floor. She brought her face to the crook of her arm and hid her eyes, letting out a few more giggles because she knew her daddy was getting her surprise.

When Paul was sure that she wasn't peeking, he quietly made his way over to the small nightstand next to her bed. His hand reached for the knob on the single draw of the pink end table that was accented with yellow stars. Without making any noise, he eased it open and removed the sole contents and placed it on her bed.

"Okay, angel, you can come see your surprise." Paul told his daughter, breaking the silence after he sat down on the bed himself.

Aurora jumped to her feet the moment she was given permission to finally see what it was that she was being given. She ran over and plopped onto her bed, next to her daddy, and peered down at the large pink photo album. There was a square cutout in the front cover of it and inside of was a picture of Paul, Stephanie, and baby Aurora.

"Mommy!" Aurora exclaimed while pointing her little finger at the picture of her mother. It was her face in the photograph that the little girl immediately took notice of.

"Yeah, it's Mommy and Daddy too. And look, there's you when you were a baby. See, it's our family picture." Paul commented as he used one hand to point out baby Aurora and the other to lovingly rub his daughter's back.

"I was the baby." She stated with a few giggles sneaking their way out of her mouth. She loved the fact that she was once the baby in her mommy's arms and not Andrew.

"Yeah, and now you're Daddy's big girl." He said proudly before giving her a small peck on the cheek.

"You're hairs tickle, Daddy." Aurora giggled bringing her hand to her father's beard to feel it against her soft hand. She wasn't used to the feeling of a beard touching her cheek since both Vince and Kurt were clean shaven.

Levesque could help but smile at his daughter's cute comment about his facial hair. He pursed his lips and turned slightly to give her soft palm a peck. The loving action caused Aurora to laugh and pull her hand away before reaching to open the album.

When the album was open, the first picture that Aurora's eyes fell upon was one of her parents on their wedding day back in 2003. It was clearly a picture taken by a wedding guest while Paul and Steph were posing for the wedding photographer to take his professional shots. The newly married couple looked happy and most importantly, very much in love. While sitting with his daughter and looking at the photo, Paul only could hope that his little girl could see the love that was there between her mother and father.

"Mommy's hair looks different." Aurora commented after noticing that the little bit of her mother's hair that wasn't covered by the white veil, was a few shades lighter than what was her mommy's normal hair color.

"Yeah, it's a little different. She got it done special a few weeks before the wedding. This picture was taken the day when Mommy and I got married."

Little Aurora brought her hand to the bottom of the page, and turned it over, completely skipping the other photographs that were joining the wedding picture. She gave a big smile the moment her eyes focused on a picture of her mommy with a big belly. But Stephanie wasn't alone in the picture; Paul was standing with her in a traditional pregnant couples' pose: the two of them turned sideways with both their hands together resting on the large extended abdomen.

"There's Mommy and Daddy, and guess what, right in that big tummy is you." Levesque whispered close to Aurora's ear like he was telling her a secret. One of his large fingers tapped on the pregnant belly in the picture.

"I'm hiding in there." She whispered with a big smile like she didn't want to give up her secret hiding spot in the picture to anyone else that might be listening to them.

Paul took the initiative and turned the page to reveal a picture that was taken in the hospital right after Aurora was born. Looking at the picture, he remembered that moment like it had only happened days ago instead of years.

"And this right here is our first official photograph together. Daddy could never forget the day you were born. This was the first time your mommy every saw me cry."

Levesque pointed to a photograph of him, a proud new daddy, holding his little baby girl in his arms. As he gazed at the picture, he remembered the overwhelming amount of love he felt the moment the doctor handed her to him. Aurora Rose had felt so tiny in his large muscular arms. She was pink and soft just like the hospital blanket she was wrapped in. Tears of joy had caused his hazel eyes to sparkle and Paul could remember how proud his wife was to see his love for their child. The moment he looked into his baby girl's small cloudy blue eyes, he knew that his life was never going to be the same.

Aurora reached forward and ran her hand over the picture of her and her daddy. It was almost like she was feeling to see if it was indeed a real picture. The idea that she had her own daddy who had been there when she was a tiny baby was such a pleasant surprise to her.

Paul leaned back in bed, taking the photo album in his hands. Aurora followed his lead and leaned back too. She seemed to be completely at ease now because she had no hesitation when it came to snuggling up to her father. She placed her head on his chest while she looked up at the other photos he had resumed showing her. He gave a short little narrative for each picture on every page as the memories flowed through his mind with ease.

Aurora remained silent as her father spoke to her. The combination of voice vibration in his chest, his heart beat, and the rising and falling of his muscular torso from his breathing was soothing her to sleep. It was when Levesque was just about to flip to the last page of the album that he looked down and noticed that she was out.

Carefully, so that he wouldn't disturb her, Paul gently set the album down on the top of the night stand with his left hand. His right arm, he used to hold his child close to him while his left hand then lovingly swept a lock of her brown hair away from her face. She looked so angelic sleeping in his arms. The only thing missing from this perfect father-daughter moment was Stephanie being there to witness it. He longed for her; if only to have her approval for his interaction with their daughter like the day she was born. Instinctively, he bent his neck forward and gently planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

* * *

Stephanie let a moan escape her parted lips before blinking her eyes open. To her surprise, daylight had flooded the room while she was still asleep. She twisted her body to her right in the direction of her husband's side of the bed. It was empty. How late had she slept in? Seeking a definite answer to the question, she rolled to her left and gazed at her digital alarm clock. It was 9:15. She couldn't remember the last time she had slept in until nine o'clock. Her body must have needed it.

Steph had spent a great deal of the night in her master bathroom retching and vomiting. It had to be in the early morning hours when she staggered back to bed as quiet as she could so as not to wake up Kurt who was snoring away. Feeling weak from all the throwing up, sleep had been a welcomed relief.

The first thing that entered Stephanie's mind when she sat up in bed was her son, Andrew. She was hoping that Kurt had been able to take the initiative and follow the baby's normal morning routine. Oh, but it wasn't just Andy that Kurt had to pay attention to, it was his two other children who were staying with them. He had to be overwhelmed by taking care of three children without her. She needed to get up and help him, regardless if her stomach was still upset.

As soon as Steph went to get out of bed, she was overcome by a wave of nausea that sent her running to the master bathroom. She practically flung herself over the toilet, sticking her face into the bowel. She let the onslaught of nausea finally overpower her and the vomit started coming.

"Steph, you okay?"

Stephanie had been so overtaken with her sickness that she hadn't even noticed that her husband was showering in their bathroom. He had been taken off guard by the abruptness of her entry into and how sick she seemed to be at the toilet.

Shutting off the shower jets, he opened the frosted glass shower door. His eyes were wide and stayed focused on his sick wife, as he grabbed a towel from the nearby rack. Kurt began to quickly dry off his muscular frame while at the same time he moved to get closer to her.

"I'm fine." She answered back in a raspy voice the moment the vomiting subsided. She raised he arm in the direction of her encroaching husband and waved for him to keep his distance. The last thing she needed was someone hovering over her when she felt this bad.

"You really don't look like you are doing fine. You should go to the doctor today before I head off to RAW." Advised Angle after he halted his steps upon his wife's request.

"No, I'm going to give it another day or so. I think it's just what Aurora had last week. It's just working itself out of my system." Stephanie explained before she pulled a small sheet of toilet paper off the roll and used it to wipe her mouth.

"I don't think it's what Aurora had. Didn't that only last one day? I think this is more serious than that. I mean, what if you get even sicker?" Kurt asked in a concerned voice that would only come from a worried loving husband. He wrapped his damp towel around his waist before making his way over to his side of the double sink basin.

Steph caught herself rolling her eyes while putting her hands on the toilet seat to help brace her as she got to her feet. She knew that her husband was worried about her condition. He wouldn't have said anything if he didn't care about her. Still, a part of her was a bit annoyed with his insistence that she sought after medical attention. Wasn't she the one going through it? She was the one being kept up half of the night by relentless vomit and nausea while he slept like a baby. Who the hell was he to tell her when it was serious enough for a doctor visit? She would know better than him, because it was her body that was going through it all.

She was willing to wait it out a day or two more. That's what she usually did when it came to an illness. She was Vince McMahon's daughter, so she had always been expected to work and perform through any ailment. If she had been expected to do on air segments and had a bad head cold, they would simply write it into the script. The show must go on. Sickness was only a state of mind and it could be overcome when there was work to be done. Those were her father's words; Words that Vincent Kennedy McMahon didn't just say but live by.

"Where's the baby?" Stephanie asked aloud switching the topic of conversation. She had moved to her side of the bathroom counter and just stood there watching her husband go about his morning toilette.

"He's in his playpen downstairs. His big sister, Kyra, is keeping an eye on him and Kody." Angle quickly replied before putting his toothpaste covered toothbrush into his mouth.

Stephanie's mouth fell open and she placed her hand on her hip, leaning some of her weight onto the side of the countertop. She couldn't believe that her husband had left their one year old and a two and a half year old under the watch of his six year old daughter. And what was even more surprising was the fact that he seemed nonchalant about it.

"And you think that was a good idea? Our son could be dead downstairs and you wouldn't even know it." Steph sneered sticking her chin out in his direction.

Her reaction caused Kurt to look over at her like she had gone crazy. Why was she being so over dramatic? After several seconds of vigorously scrubbing his teeth with his tooth brush, he spit out the paste in his sink.

"You're being ridiculous. The kids are fine. I've had Kyra look after her little brother when she was only four years old. Andrew is in his playpen, it's not like he can toddle off and hurt himself." Angle fired back the moment he had rinsed his mouth out with water.

"Oh yeah, well, we'll see how ridiculous I am when we're rushing our baby to Greenwich Hospital with a fractured skull! You can be a real jackass sometimes, you know that?" She hollered back at him with such force that it caused her face to turn red.

Feeling as that she had said her piece, Stephanie started to walk out of the bathroom but Kurt was quick to go after her. He grabbed hold of her right hand and pulled her back to him. He wasn't going to let her leave the room that upset; especially since it was him she was mad at.

"Hey, come here. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. I just wanted to get a shower, a shave, and dressed before you woke up so that you wouldn't feel overwhelmed by watching three kids when you're so sick. If I thought Andrew was in any danger, I wouldn't have left him downstairs with his brother and sister, you know that." Angle said in almost a whisper as he looked directly into his wife's eyes that were still filled with anger and frustration.

His words were spoken with sincerity and love. He began gently rubbing her hand in his as the left corner of his mouth pulled taunt into a smirk. Stephanie batted her eyes a few times, allowing his words and physical advances to sink in before she reacted. And then, as a way to literally decompress, she exhaled with a sigh.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you. I'm just on edge because I don't feel well. I know you're a good daddy and wouldn't do anything to put our son in harm's way." She replied in a soft voice while at the same time closing the distance between them.

"You're right, I wouldn't." Kurt agreed slowly bringing his forehead to hers.

"I'd give you a kiss but I can't even imagine how bad my breath is right now." Steph said with a chuckle, running her hands up and down her man's hard chest. He had such a great body for a forty year old. She especially loved the small bit of chest hair between his pecs.

Angle chuckled and then pressed his lips firmly against hers. Stephanie instinctively brought her hands up to her husband's face while closing her eyes and enjoying their tender kiss. It was the feeling of light stubble under her finger tips that immediately made Steph think about how much she loved a man with facial hair. Her ex-husband's beard was one of her favorite physical features that attracted him to her in the first place. There was something sexy about feeling soft, well groomed whiskers brushing up against your cheek during an intimate moment.

"You should skip the shave. You'd look so sexy with a beard." She commented aloud the moment their kiss ended. She hadn't even planned on saying anything about it; it just sort of slipped out.

"You want me to grow a beard? What, like ZZ Top? That would turn you on?" Angle asked with a hearty laugh causing Steph to let go of his face and playfully punch him in the chest.

"No, not like ZZ Top! I mean a short well groomed beard!"

"All right, I can change my look up a little. I don't think Dad will mind since it will go with my heel character." Kurt responded letting out a few more chuckles of laughter.

"You're not my father's husband, you're mine. So it shouldn't matter what he thinks about it. Now come on, let's throw some clothes on and go check on the kids." Steph said in a somewhat bossy yet playful tone of voice.

While Angle changed into a pair of briefs, a blue MMA "Tap Out" shirt and running shorts, Stephanie changed from her night shirt into a causal t-shirt and cotton shorts. She wasn't going to RAW or anywhere else today so she wanted to be as comfortable as possible.

"Holy sh-"

That was all that escaped Kurt's mouth the moment he and his wife entered the living room. His eyes were wide and he knew immediately that his wife had been right; not because something terrible had happened to their baby son, but something definitely did happen involving his two older children. Perhaps Kyra and Kody were not old enough to be left unsupervised. He would never hear the end of this.

"What happened in here?" Stephanie asked in a voice that was full of concern.

Steph had thought that the first thing that would beckon her attention down stairs would be her one year old child but instead, it was a mess of broken glass, colored marbles, dirt, and pieces of plant on the glass end table and white carpet floor in the living room.

The moment Steph had inquired about the mess, Kody started to cry. He obviously had something to do with the broken plant vase. It was Kyra who spoke up to answer her step mother's question.

"Kody was jumping between the couches and his foot hit the vase and it fell onto the table and broke. It was an accident. He didn't mean to do it." Kyra explained in her brother's defense as the two and a half year old continued to cry quietly as he looked to his big sister for support and comfort in the form of a hug.

"I didn't think that Kody meant to break my marble filled plant vase. It's okay, accidents happen. You guys shouldn't have been left alone down here for so long. The important thing is that no one was hurt." Steph said calmly looking first at Kyra and Kody, then to her little son standing in the playpen, and then finally at her husband when she spoke the part about the children being left unattended.

With that said, Steph moved to pick up her child who was starting to fuss because of Kody being so upset.

"Kody, come to Daddy." Kurt requested aloud moving forward to get his son.

Reluctantly, the little boy allowed his father to pick him up and sit down with him on the sofa. He was still crying and constantly rubbing his little brown eyes.

"Shh, stop crying, its okay, no one is mad at you, shh." Angle whispered in his best soothing voice.

Little Kody began to try his best at sucking up his tears. His small frame jerked each time he took a short breath in to hold back his emotions.

"You're a big boy who's going to be three years old in October. I think you know that it's wrong to jump on the furniture. The same rules that are at Mommy's house are also at Daddy and Stephanie's house. Daddy would have been very upset if it was you who fell instead of the vase or if you got cut on the broken glass."

Stephanie said nothing as she watched her husband's approach at parenting as a bystander. She was impressed with how calm and loving he was being with his older son. Seeing Kurt interacting with his child made her thoughts shift to her daughter, Aurora. She wondered how her visit was going with her daddy. Hopefully no news was good news. At least she didn't get a call in the middle of the night with Aurora screaming and crying in the background. She had spent the night at her daddy's house and hopefully had a nice time bonding with him.

"I want you to say that you're sorry to Stephanie. It was her plant you knocked over and broke." Angle instructed his son.

"Sorry." He whispered through his tears with his little bottom lip extended outward. He looked so precious that Steph found herself getting a little teary eyed by seeing how distraught he was.

"It's okay, sweetheart. I know you didn't mean to break it and make a mess. I'll just go grab my little dirt devil and take care of it before the dirt sets into the carpet."

"Steph, no, you sit down and rest. I've got this." Kurt quickly interjected before Steph could even ask him to take their son from her so that she could clean up. She had been sick for the last two days. She needed to take it easy.

After Kurt cleaned up the mess, it was quickly decided that he was going to take both Kyra and Kody with him to RAW for the day. After all, it would be quite unfair for Steph, who was still under the weather, to look after three children. Angle was still worried about how she was going to manage even with just their one year old but Stephanie had assured him that she would be fine.

Of course, it wasn't long after Kurt and his kids left that Steph had an attack of nausea. She had to leave the baby in his pack and play and make a mad dash to the nearest downstairs bathroom. The moment he was put in the playpen, Andy let out a loud forceful wail showing how unhappy he was with his mother's decision to plop him down in the netted box and leave the room. He didn't understand what his mommy was going through; he only saw it as her not giving him his much needed attention.

"Andy, Mommy will be right back." Steph managed to call out before having to bring her face back to the toilet bowl. She could hear her son continuing to scream for her in the living room.

And if her situation wasn't worse enough, the sound of the door bell chiming signaled yet another pressing matter. She let out a moan after retching a few more times, the nausea was beginning to fade; thank God since the door bell chime was unrelenting. As Stephanie struggled to get to her feet, she was sure that she would have a few choice words to say to whoever was on the other side of her front door.

Under normal circumstances, Steph would have first gone over to pick up and console her crying baby, but she couldn't do it this time. She felt way too weak from all of the painful retching and vomiting she had endured. She would have never forgiven herself is she would have fallen with him and he was still too wobbly to walk on his own without any assistance. So she left Andrew screaming and crying in the living room as she slowly made her way to the foyer to answer the front door.

"Mommy!" Aurora exclaimed the moment the front door opened and she caught sight of her mother. The three year old didn't seem to notice that her mom was any worse for the wear, she was just happy to see her.

"Hi sweetie, what a surprise." Steph said with a weak smile. She was doing her best to sound enthusiastic to see her little girl. She was being held by her daddy, which was a pleasant surprise to Steph. The visit must have gone really well, thank God.

"Yeah, I text you earlier this morning saying that Aurora and I were going to drop by this afternoon to pick up some clothes. We almost didn't think you were home, Aurora kept ringing the door bell. You okay, you look a little pale." Paul asked noticing right away that Stephanie's color looked off.

"I'm just still under the weather with this stomach thing. I'm sorry, I didn't check my phone at all this morning, and things got kind of hectic. Come on in." Stephanie replied before she moved away from the door and opened it wider so that her daughter and former husband could gain access to the home.

Once inside the house, Aurora wanted to be put down so that she could go off on her own leaving both her parents in the foyer to talk alone. She wanted to go check on all of her stuffed animals. Levesque narrowed his eyebrows as he immediately noticed the sound of a crying baby echoing in the spacious home.

"I take it that Angle didn't the kids with him?" Paul asked with a quick roll of his eyes before Steph turned to look at him and reply. This was just what he needed, Angle children being there and ruining any shot he would have to spend time with Steph and Aurora.

"He took Kyra and Kody with him. The baby stayed home with me. There really isn't anyone to take care of a baby at RAW and I do not want Candice Michelle thinking that she has an excuse to flirt with my husband by offering to babysit my child." Steph explained while bringing her hand to her face to touch her forehead. Her crying baby was giving her a headache.

"Oh I'm sure she'll be watching his other kids. The girls must really be talking because there are rumors going around at SmackDown tapings that Candice has the hots for Angle. Why she could possibly have a thing for that Olympic twerp, I have no idea. I mean, maybe she thinks she has a chance with him, you know, because of his track record." Paul said aloud nonchalantly as he watched Steph's face for any sign of jealousy or suspicion.

She looked to be deep in thought. He couldn't tell if his words had even sunk into her subconscious as she looked to be staring off into space. And then, just when it looked like she was going to get upset and say something in response to his words, she quickly excused herself and ran down the hall.

"Okay…" Paul said to himself aloud letting out a deep sigh. That wasn't the response he had been looking for. He was sure that if she wasn't sick, she would have reacted just as he wanted her to.

Levesque followed the path she had taken down the hallway and stopped at the open doorway to the bathroom where he found her getting sick. Seeing her on the floor in front of the toilet, made Paul think back to the pregnancy that had resulted in a miscarriage. But why was he thinking about that, she wasn't pregnant, she had a mutation of Aurora's stomach bug that he himself had witnessed in Aurora's room last week. He didn't even want to think about the mere idea of Stephanie being pregnant unless of course the pregnancy was by his own doing.

"It's unrelenting…I'm so tired and I have a crying baby to take care of…" Steph sobbed the moment she stopped vomiting. She was reaching her threshold of what she could take for a single day. The day was only half over though, and that really worried her. Was it going to get worse?

His former wife's crying compelled Paul to approach her. It was now that he knew just how bad off she really was. He felt stupid for even bringing up the Angle bullshit as soon as he walked in the door. She was all by herself; no Kurt, Vince, or even Linda. He needed to be there for her.

"Do you need me to take you to the hospital or something?" He offered in a gentle voice as he knelt down beside her. Without even thinking, he swept away one of her brown locks of hair that was hanging in front of her face.

"No, I don't need to go to the hospital. I'm going to be okay, it just has to pass. I hate to ask this of you, but would you do me a huge favor?" Stephanie asked through her tears while she looked directly into her ex-husband's hazel eyes. They were warm and inviting and maybe that's why she felt comfortable enough to ask him.

"I'll do anything you want me to do, Steph." He quickly replied gently running his hand across her cheek. He was looking into her eyes as he spoke with sincerity. She looked so beautiful, even now in the throes of a stomach bug.

"Can you take care of Andrew for me and keep an eye on Aurora?"

Paul's first gut reaction to the request was to give an emphatic no. Of course the rejection wouldn't be to watching over his little girl but taking care of Angle's baby. It wasn't his kid. Hell, not only wasn't it his kid, but it was the son of the man he despised. The baby was a physical representation of the new life Steph had tried to make without him. Now she wanted him to play nanny to the son that should have been his?

"I know that looking after the baby is a lot for me to ask of you. I just don't have the strength right now. Please?" She pleaded after a few awkward moments since her first request had been heard.

Her blue eyes were sparkling with tears and he could see the look of desperation on her face. It was at that very moment that he realized the opportunity that he had just been given. This was his first real chance to show Stephanie that he still loved and cared about her. This was his opportunity to show her that he was still the loving and caring partner she had once wanted to share her life with.

Yes, he did want to still share his life with her. It wasn't until that very moment that Paul actually realized what he was going to have to put up with in order to make that a reality. The little one year old, while it was Angle's son, it was also Steph's. Like Aurora, he was one of her children and would have to live with him if they got back together. There was no way to have Steph without her youngest child. It was packaged deal. He had to accept the baby if he wanted to be with its mother.

"Sure, I'll take care of it. Just relax." He finally told her before getting to his feet.

"Thank you, Paul. I'm really glad you're here." She admitted letting a smile show through her tears.

"I am too." He softly said before leaving the bathroom.

As he began to walk toward the living room to approach the screaming baby, Aurora met him with a look of concern on her face.

"Where's Mommy? The baby's crying loud and I wanna watch Toy Story." Aurora inquired in a loud enough voice to be heard over the screaming baby.

She was looking for her mother to come in and perform her usual tasks of mommy. Her absence was somewhat unsettling to the three year old.

"Mommy is not feeling well so she asked Daddy to take care of everything. Why don't you go find the movie while Daddy tries to get that baby to stop crying?" Levesque suggested to his daughter while ushering her back into the living room with him. He didn't want her to see how sick her mother was, it would only frighten her.

Aurora quickly ran over to where all her own blu-ray and DVD movies were organized on the other side of the living room while her father attempted to make contact with the crying baby. To Paul's surprise, Andrew immediately reached up for him the moment he approached the playpen. After a few seconds of hesitation, Paul bent down and lifted the crying baby up into his arms. As if someone physically flipped a switch, the baby's crying completely stopped once he was in Levesque's arms.

"Hey, hands off the nose, kid." Paul quickly said with a chuckle, moving away from the baby's hands which immediately went to his face or more specifically, his nose.

This was the first time he had held Andrew and actually took the time to study his little face. What Paul saw surprised him, making him wonder how never noticed before. The baby's blue sparkling eyes were the very same eyes he had looked into moments ago. He had Steph's eyes, not Angle's.

"Oh shit, I think you shit." He then said after taking a whiff of the air. To confirm his suspicion, Paul held the baby away from him and then turned him around so that he could smell his backside. Yeah, there was no mistaking it.

"Daddy, you can't say the's' word." Aurora corrected her dad coming back to him with a blu-ray copy of the movie Toy Story.

"Sorry, I guess Mommy is going to have to spank me, huh?" Paul asked his daughter while making his eyebrows go up and down causing her to laugh.

"Can you put my movie on now? She then asked holding the thin blue movie case up toward her father.

"Yeah, in a second sweetie, if I put this kid down, he's going to start wailing again. Let Daddy take care of his situation really quick and then I'll put your movie on."

The last thing Paul would ever dream of doing was put Angle's kid before his own, but the last thing he wanted to hear was more crying. Besides, what would Steph think if she came in to see her screaming baby had a shit filled diaper while he was busy putting on a movie? Aurora was a big girl and she would be fine for the few minutes it took to change a diaper.

Aurora Rose frowned sharply and stomped her right foot hard on the carpet floor. She watched with jealousy as her daddy took the baby into the kitchen to be changed. Wasn't he suppose to be her daddy and no one else's? Why couldn't baby Andrew's daddy take care of him so her daddy could take care of her? She was so confused now. Why was her daddy taking care of the baby that he said was stealing her mommy away from her? It all had to be baby Andrew's fault.

Full of jealousy and anger, the three year old swiftly kicked over the baby's basket of toys that was sitting by the playpen sending all the toys scattered across the floor. She then ran over to the nearest sofa and plopped down on it.

"Oh my God, Steph, what do you feed this kid? It's enough to fill a mason jar. Ugh, and it's all up the small of his back!" Paul yelled out before he gagged and coughed due to the pungent smell that was unleashed as soon as he opened the soiled diaper. H

"Kurt fed him this morning. If it's all over him you can wash him off in the kitchen sink. There should be some diapers under in the top cabinet of the wet bar. Let me know if you can't find them." Steph called back from the bathroom.

"Well, I'd say you look like your daddy below the belt too." Paul snickered just loud enough for him and the baby to hear as he lifted him up, leaving behind the engorged diaper and the baby's clothes on the table.

Levesque had the baby stand in the sink. He supported the child with his left hand, while the other manned the kitchen sink hose and rinsed the baby's lower half completely clean. Andy kept bouncing on his feet while letting out playful squeals. After he was clean, Paul used a handful of paper towels to dry the baby's lower front and back. The diapers were just where his former wife had said they would be. He quickly applied one to the child, not forgetting the technique he had acquired from when Aurora was a baby.

"There, good as new." He commented letting the one year old down on the kitchen floor wearing just his fresh diaper. Andy took a few wobbly steps but then fell on his diapered butt.

With new found freedom, Andrew began to crawl away while Paul disposed of the dirty diaper. Levesque had to then run after him as he crawled with speed to the bathroom where his mother was.

"Are you coming to see, Mommy?" Steph asked sitting up from her position next to the toilet. She then smiled as she saw Paul approach and scoop up the baby before he could crawl into the room.

"I forgot how quick they can crawl at this age. You doing okay, are you still vomiting?" Levesque asked with concern.

"The nausea passed, now I'm just tired. If you don't mind, I want to try and lay down for a little while. I feel weak."

"Yeah, no problem, just wait a minute and let me stick the baby in the playpen and then I'll help you get up stairs."

Paul moved quickly as he deposited the baby back into the pack and play and left the room again before the one year old could fuss for being put back in the playpen and Aurora could ask again for the movie to be put back on. His priority was Stephanie, nothing else mattered.

"Woah, I told you to wait." Paul said aloud as he had to rush to his former wife when it looked like she might collapse.

Stephanie, always being the independent woman, had not listened to him and was trying to make her way to the front of the house where the stairs were. She had been going along with her side up against the wall, she was that weak that she needed the wall to support her weight. When it looked like she could possibly fall, Levesque took the initiative and effortlessly scooped her up into his arms. His right hand bracing her back while his left was tucked under her legs.

"Paul, you didn't have to." Steph said in a weak voice like she was a little out of it. Her face naturally rested against his.

She hadn't expected her ex-husband to be carrying her. In fact, it felt a little awkward. She hadn't been in his arms like this since they were married. Yet as weird as it was having him carry her upstairs, there was a level of comfort she felt, especially the feeling of his soft beard touching her face. She knew there was a reason that she missed facial hair on a man.

Yeah I did, you were about to fall." He explained flexing a little as he felt her right hand move and rest on his clothed chest.

This was the second time in the last few days where he was carrying a woman, the first of which being Kelly Kelly. Steph was the only woman he actually enjoyed having in his arms. As he slowly ascended the stairs with her, he moved his eyes down to see if she was looking at him. Her eyes were closed. Levesque felt like he was her one and only prince who was saving her from the stupid bald jock ogre and carrying her to safety where they could be together living happily ever after.

And there, behind the white double doors was the Angles' master bedroom. Paul took a moment to scan the room with his eyes since it had been the first time he had stepped foot in it. It was surprisingly a lot like what his and Stephanie's master bedroom was like. Similar bedroom set, décor; even the bed sheets looked like ones they had had on their bed.

"Do you want to be under the covers?" He asked the moment after he gently laid her down on the side of the unmade bed that was closest to the door that he assumed was the master bathroom.

Instead of answering her former husband, Steph let out a long sigh. Paul took that as an affirmative and he grabbed an edge of the bed sheet and pulled it up, covering the mother of his child. Stephanie stirred only slightly when she felt the sheet on her body. Her head rolled to the left, toward the direction that Paul was standing at bedside. Her beautiful lips parted showing the bottom of her two front pearly white teeth. Stephanie's left hand then poked out from the edge of the bed which Paul gently took hold of. When he was going to put it back under the bed sheet, he noticed that she wasn't wearing her wedding ring; he smiled and returned the hand to its place under the sheet.

Without even thinking twice, Paul planted his right hand on the wooden headboard to brace himself as he slowly began to close the distance between his and Stephanie's parted lips. He could feel his heart rate increase with each inch their lips got closer and closer. And then, in the silence and privacy of the upstairs master bedroom, it happened.

His parted lips gently pressed against hers, matching his top and bottom lip to her top and bottom. To his surprise, only seconds after their lips touched, he felt her lips purse together under his, allowing him to kiss her less awkwardly. Just when he was contemplating turning the soft sweet kiss into an opened mouth one, her lips retracted back to their natural position and he backed away from her. The moment he was standing upright, her eyes blinked open. She was staring up at him blankly. He gave her a smile, wondering if she was with it enough to know what had just transpired between them. Before he could even speak a word, she let out a soft moan and closed her eyes.

* * *

"So we're good, no hard feelings?" Angle asked Jack Swagger as they stood at ringside in the empty arena that would be home to RAW later that night.

"Yeah, of course. Hey man, I was the one who was out of line for using your ankle lock. Everyone knows that that's been your move since Shamrock retired from pro-wrestling. I'm glad we're cool." Jack said extending his hand out toward Kurt which was quickly accepted.

"Kyra, keep an eye on your brother real quick, I need to make a phone call." Kurt told her daughter who was sitting on the ring rope close to where her father was talking. Kody was in the ring running back and forth to each of the four corners.

"I'll talk to you later, I've got to call my house and check on my wife, she's sick at home." He told Swagger, excusing himself from the conversation as he began to walk away from ringside and up the ramp.

He had text Stephanie twice already since he and the kids arrived at the arena. He hadn't called just in case she and or the baby were sleeping, but now he was growing concerned because he hadn't heard from her.

"You're Woody, Daddy!" Aurora told her dad as they sat and watched the Pixar movie together on the sofa. She was all smiles again as soon as her father returned to the living room to spend time with her. The baby was asleep in the playpen, so she had him all to herself.

* * *

"If I'm Woody, Mommy must be Bo Peep." Levesque replied with a chuckle. He thought it was cute that his daughter had picked out what character he would be in the movie.

"And Kurt's Buzz." She added pointing to the plasma television that was showing the part of the movie where all of the toys were crowded around the new toy in Andy's room.

"Oh, you think you're funny, huh?" He laughed as he began tickling his little girl causing her to burst into laughter.

Their cute father-daughter moment was interrupted by the sound of the house the cordless phone ringing in its cradle on the nearest end table. Paul leaned over and saw the flashing call id display: Kurt's Cell.

"Daddy's going to answer the phone real quick so it doesn't wake Mommy." Paul told Aurora as he quickly got up from the sofa with the phone in hand and went into the kitchen to actually answer it.

He smiled wide as his thumb pressed in the talk button and he brought the phone to his ear.

"Hey Kurt."


	40. Chapter 40

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty

Kurt sharply drew in his breath the moment he heard the voice on the other end of the phone. Did he really just hear Paul's voice? Quickly, he brought his phone out in front of him to make sure he had in fact called his home number. After all, Paul's number was in his contact list. Steph had insisted that he keep Paul's number in his phone just in case either of them needed to get in touch with him because of Aurora. No, he had not dialed the wrong number. Paul was answering his house phone.

"Paul, what the hell are you doing at my house?" Angle finally barked into the phone putting an end to the several seconds of silence.

"I'm taking care of Steph. She's sick and needed help with the kids. She asked me to stay." Levesque replied in a calm, cool, and collected voice. Deep down he was completely reveling in revealing to Angle the fact that Stephanie had asked him to stay.

"Let me talk to my wife." Kurt demanded with a hint of anger in his voice. He was doing his best to keep his exasperation at bay because he was at work with his fellow wrestlers who were within earshot of the conversation.

"I would but Steph isn't available right now. She's upstairs resting in bed. Don't worry, Stephy's in good hands. I tucked in her really good." Paul told him in a smug voice.

Before Angle could say even a word back, he heard click and then silence on the line. Did that asshole just hang up on him? He took the phone away from his good ear and then held it again in front of him so that he could see the display. It was back on the main screen. Levesque had in fact ended the call.

With his smart phone in his right hand, Angle brought his left hand to the touch screen and was about to find his wife's cell phone number in his contact list when he noticed what he had forgotten earlier that day. A white line was imprinted around his bear left ring finger. Kurt's wedding band was missing from his hand. He must have forgotten to put it on after his shower. He couldn't believe that he hadn't noticed that it was missing earlier. Bringing his left thumb across his palm, he used it to rub the side of his finger, it felt weird not having it on. The only time he ever took it off was for matches, showers, and sleep. Oh well, at least he knew where it was at home. He would have been really upset if he had lost it.

Kurt turned his attention back on his cell phone and quickly found his wife's cell phone number. Right when he was about to touch the green call bar on the screen, his attention was diverted by his son crying out and then Kyra hollering for him.

"Daddy, Kody fell!"

Angle whipped around in the direction of the ring where he had left his two children. Kyra was now standing on the edge of the ring apron right above where her little brother was laying wailing on the black padded concrete floor. All the wrestlers in the immediate area began to make their way over to the crying child including his father who rushed down the ramp after hitting the back and lock buttons on his phone.

As Angle ran down to ringside, he was praying to God that his son wasn't seriously hurt. He should have never left him playing in the ring with his sister. Hadn't he learned by now that Kyra wasn't a suitable babysitter for her little brother? How would he tell Karen if their child was seriously injured on his watch? Her bitching and lecturing would never end.

"How did he fall?" Kurt asked quickly as he immediately scooped up his crying son.

"He was running to the ropes and he fell out in between this one and this one." Kyra explained to her father as she touched the middle and bottom rope.

"Is he okay? I saw the fall, it was really bad. He landed right on his head." Swagger reported to Angle while Kody continued to cry.

Kurt brought his hand up to his child's face and he saw right away a large bump forming on the two and a half year old's forehead. That was where he must have landed. Gently, he brought fingertips to the swollen area and touched it, causing the little boy to squirm away and cry louder. There was definitely heat coming from the injury.

"All right, all right, shows over everyone. We're going to go backstage and let the EMTs look at the bump on his head." Angle announced to the surrounding co-workers that had surrounded around them. He wanted them to go back to whatever they were doing and stop staring at them.

Kyra jumped down off the apron and followed her father up the ramp and through the curtain that lead to the guerrilla position and then the backstage area of the arena. She was making sure to keep up with her dad. Vince, who had been busy dressing down members of the creative team because of their weekend blunder, took notice of his son-in-law walking passed him.

"Kurt, everything okay?" He called after him. McMahon could see the look of worry on Angle's face while was holding his crying child.

The inquiry from his father-in-law caused Kurt to pause for a moment. Where did Vince want him to start? Did he want to tell him about the feeling he had when he called his home to check on his wife and heard her ex-husband's voice answer the phone? And if that wasn't bad enough, how about the comments Levesque made before hanging up on him? Vince would, without a doubt, be just upset by Paul's boldness just as much as him, hell maybe even more.

Angle wasn't going to take the time to go there right now. In his arms was his crying child. He was tending to his crying son that he should have been keeping an eye on while he played in the ring. It was his fault.

"Kody took a header out of the ring. I'm going to get him checked out in the trainer room." He finally replied and continued down the hall.

"Poor kid, I hope he checks out okay." Vince replied watching as Kurt continued to walk away and then finally disappear around the corner.

* * *

With a glass of ice water in his hand, Paul tried his very best to enter the Angle master bedroom without making any noise. Steph had been dead to the world for a few hours; her body must have needed it. The glass of water was for her. Paul knew how important it was that Stephanie stay hydrated.

"Sorry, I tried not to wake you." Levesque apologized the moment he saw his former wife slowly moving to sit up in bed.

"No, it's fine, I don't want to sleep all day. How long was I out?" Stephanie asked in a parched voice not even making an attempt to turn and look at her digital clock at bedside.

"A few hours, don't worry, I've been holding down the fort for you." Paul commented with his smile that turned into a smirk. He had taken a seat on the edge of the bed and was now holding out the cold beverage in her direction.

"Thank you..." Steph muttered, her voice trailing off before she reached for the glass of ice water.

"You're welcome." He answered back in a soft voice to watch hers.

Paul then took the time to study her while she drank from the glass. Her face was still just as pale as it was when he had first arrived earlier in the day. She seem to be quite out of it. The bug still wasn't yet out of her system. Because of her delicate state, he thought it best to refrain from bringing up the kiss they had shared just before he had left her to sleep. Though he thought he felt something was between them during the tender kiss, there was still that inner doubt within in since he did not know how she would respond to him bringing it up.

"Did Kurt call? He should be at the arena by now." Steph questioned the moment she finished taking a large sip of the water.

"Yeah, he called a little bit ago, but I didn't want to wake you up." Levesque told her nonchalantly. His tone of voice showed not even a hint of the nature of the conversation between him and Angle.

"Well, hopefully he's doing all right with the two kids. He probably has his hands full right now." She commented with a slight chuckle before wincing a little. Her abdominal muscles were still sore from all the vomiting.

"Oh yeah, I'm sure he's got a lot to deal with, not just the kids but Candice following him around like a cat in heat. Though, you know what, he probably likes that. I mean, what guy doesn't like that kind of a attention? She's probably watching his kids for him too." Paul told her with a smirk while making his eyebrows move up and down to add effect to what he was saying.

Levesque had his eyes focused on Stephanie all the while he was speaking about her current husband and Candice Michelle. He was hoping that some of what he was saying was sinking in and making her question what was going on backstage at the RAW show without her. He couldn't help but smile when he heard her let out a forced laugh and then fold her arms.

"There's nothing between Candice and Kurt. She's married too after all." Steph pointed out with a smile shinning through as she shrugged her shoulders; letting the small bit of suspicion fade away.

"Well, that never stopped Angle before. I think we both know that." Paul answered back quickly motioning with his chin in her direction.

Stephanie's eyes widened in response to her ex-husband's boldness. She was taken a bit off guard by his insinuation that Kurt was more than willing to not just be unfaithful to her, but do so with a married woman. He was using her, his former wife, as his evidence of Angle's modus operandi. As if her and Kurt's love, the basis of their marriage, was anything but legitimate.

She looked away from his obvious gaze. Steph was sure he was looking for some sort of a verbal reaction to his words. She was hesitating to do so. His suggestions caused her to feel uneasy and instead of getting upset at him, she'd rather just end the conversation. Setting aside his uncalled for remarks, he was taking such good care of her, their daughter, and her baby son.

"Can you please leave me alone for a little bit? I'm getting a bit of a headache. I'm sure the kids need you downstairs."

Paul's large frame contracted as he let out a long sigh of disappointment. For some reason, he wasn't expecting her to kick him out of her bedroom. Perhaps what he said really hit close to home. He had seen the look on her face. She didn't like him bringing up her past indiscretion with Angle. Funny how things changed when the preverbal shoe was on the other foot. He was making her think of her wonderful husband as a wife stealing cheater, and she didn't like it.

"Yeah sure, just holler if you need me." He answered before getting to his feet.

"Will do." Steph muttered while her eyes followed her former husband as he made his way to the double doors of the master bedroom and disappeared on the other side of them.

When she was left alone in her large bedroom, she let out a long sigh and let herself shift onto her right side, facing her husband's side of the bed. She didn't know why she was even letting Paul's words bother her at all. Steph had been through a marriage where infidelity had taken place. She was wiser now and would know what to look for if she even suspected it in her new marriage to Kurt.

While she wrestled with her thoughts, what she saw sitting on her husband's bedside table, caused her to come back to reality. She squinted her eyes slightly, thinking that maybe she was mistaking what she was seeing sitting there on the table. Slowly, she slide her body to his side of the bed, and reached out for the small object her eyes were focused on so intently.

Retracting her arm, Steph brought back her husband's wedding band in her hand. She then took the ring in her fingers and held it in front of her. One of her finger tips ran over each of the diamonds that were set in it. She couldn't help think back to when she had put it on Kurt's left ring finger before they were pronounced husband and wife.

What was the wedding band doing here? It wasn't like Kurt to leave it behind. In the full year they had been married, Steph knew that there were only three occasions when Kurt would remove the ring: when he slept, showered, and before his matches. He would never leave it at home, especially when he was traveling for a show. At first, Stephanie trusted that he must have just simply forgot it, but knowing her husband's strict routine, and thinking back to Paul's words, she couldn't help but second guess that trust.

* * *

"I'm telling you, something's going on between Kurt and Stephanie Angle. This is the second RAW she hasn't been at. It's just Kurt and his kids minus his wedding band." Maria Kanellis said aloud to the group of divas that were standing with her at the wide mirror in the divas locker room.

RAW had yet to begin and the women performers of World Wrestling Entertainment were doing their first stage of grooming before heading over to makeup and wardrobe. This was the prime time where they could gossip in the locker room when they were all there.

"And you actually take the time to notice if the man has a ring on his finger? I doubt there's anything behind it." Melina replied back while she ran her fingers through her hair in front of the mirror.

"Yeah I did notice. I got a good look at him when he was carrying his crying kid backstage to the trainer's room. He's not wearing it anymore and Steph hasn't been to a RAW in two weeks. There is definitely some drama going on." Maria quickly responded.

"I'm just going to go ahead and say what we're all thinking. Candice has something to do with it all. Why else was Kurt so willing to trust her with his baby while Steph was nowhere to be found?"

"Well, I went as Triple H's date to Stephanie and Kurt's baby's first birthday. I was kind of in party mode so I was a little smashed, but there was definitely a lot of arguing going on. I know that much." Kelly Kelly divulged, giving her somewhat vague account of the party. She couldn't resist doing her part to contribute to the gossip.

"Oh my God, they must be on the outs and that's why she isn't here. Poor Stephanie, this is her second marriage, isn't it?" Maria asked in a tone of voice that sounded sympathetic to her assessment of Stephanie's plight.

"Yeah, it is. I just can't believe he'd do that to her. They were so cute as a couple and they have a baby together. I just hope they can work it out." Kelly Kelly commented matching Maria's tone of voice.

"Who do you want to work it out?" Candice Michelle asked the moment she entered the divas locker room while Barbie Blank was finishing giving comments on the Kurt-Stephanie situation.

The arrival of Candice caused a hush to fall over the locker room. The divas eyes widened while both Maria and Barbie exhaled sharply. It was an awkward silence that lasted several seconds until Maria spoke up for Kelly Kelly.

"Oh, we were all just talking about Taker and Michelle. She had mentioned to Barbie that her and Mark were having some problems lately." Maria lied with ease.

"That's a shame, but you know, I'm not surprised. Being married and being in this business isn't easy. Ken and I have had our fair share of problems in the three years we've been married. I mean, I barely see the guy during the week because of WWE. Sometimes, it's like I'm not even married." Candice said with a chuckle and then a slight exhale. Her words caused a few eyebrows to raise.

"Not to change the subject but does anyone know what the story is on the buzz going on in the trainer's room with the EMTs? It seems like a lot of commotion before a show." Candice inquired while she placed her luggage into the vertical cubby she decided she would claim.

Again, there was a small pause in the locker room. It was obvious that the divas weren't exactly sure how to respond to her since they all knew that the drama going on in the trainer's room had to do with Kurt and his little son, Kody.

"I have no idea." Maria snapped back in a reply. She thought it was best to not get involved in the situation in anyway. Gossiping about it with the other girls was one thing, but directly playing a part in all the drama was quite another. She didn't want to take any chances of getting on Steph's bad side.

"Kurt's older son, Kody, hurt himself somehow and Kurt is in the trainer's room with both his older kids making sure everything is okay." Barbie Blank blurted out without batting an eye. She seemed to be more focused on herself in the mirror than the fact that she had just spilled the beans.

"Aw, poor thing, I should go and see if Kurt needs a hand. He's such a sweet guy." Candice gushed.

She had no reservations about leaving her luggage right where she had sat it without even unpacking her wrestling gear. The group of fellow divas watched in the mirror as she quickly left the locker room as if Kurt himself had beckoned her to come to his aid.

"Oh I'm sure she'll want to give him a hand." Melina joked making her right hand bend into the formation of the letter 'O' before she bent her wrist up and down. This caused the majority of the woman to give a few stifled giggles of laughter.

"You really don't know when to keep your mouth shut, do you?" Maria scoffed at Kelly Kelly. She was the only one who hadn't laughed at the crude joke that Melina told. Maria was sure that Barbie had no filter between her brain and her mouth.

Barbie just gave a look of confusion before shrugging her shoulders. She didn't seem to see the potential problem with giving information to Candice about Kurt.

* * *

"Do you think he has a concussion?" Angle asked the EMT while he watched him examining his son.

"I'd say he just has a nasty bump on his head. We can't be sure though unless you take him to the hospital for an MRI. He's doing a great job following my finger. That's a good sign." The medical professional commented as he slowly moved his right pointer finger horizontally from the left to the right in Kody's field of vision.

"I'm sorry you got hurt, buddy." Kurt told his son in a sympathetic tone of voice that also had a hint of guilt within it. Angle gently brushed his child's hair with his hand as an attempt to further comfort him. He completely blamed himself for not being the attentive father that he needed to be.

While the adults were busy attending to Kody, it was Kyra who first noticed Candice Michelle entering the trainer's room. She was quick to furrow her eyebrows as the diva walked further into the room toward them.

"Hi guys, is everything okay? I heard a little one hurt himself." Candice said aloud, as a way of announcing her presence to everyone in the room, especially Kurt.

"Oh, hi Candice, we think he's going to be okay. He took a header out of the ring." Angle explained moving to turn toward the diva while he spoke to her. When he moved, it allowed Candice to see little Kody.

"Aw, what a bump on the head. You poor little guy." She gushed immediately stepping forward to approach the child. Kody looked a little shy. He cracked a smile when the diva gave him a soft peck on the cheek. This was the calmest he had been since he had gotten hurt.

"He's a tough guy, being an Angle after all." Angle added with a proud smile looking on at his son.

"I'm sure he is. And I know he's an Angle because he's handsome just like his daddy." Candice pointed out glancing over at Kurt while she spoke. Her words caused him to smile wide. She was always so flirty with him. He had to admit, it was somewhat flattering.

"Hey Kurt, we need you for pre-tapes." A member of the production crew said popping his head into the room.

"Now? How many segments do I having to do? My son is hurt. I need to be with him and my daughter." Angle replied with a look of disappointment. He hated when he was being forced to choose between his career and family.

"Vince's orders, man." The guy replied giving him a shrug to show that it was completely out of his hands and that he was just the messenger.

"Kurt, go ahead and do the pre-taping. I'll be happy to watch the kids for you." Candice Michelle offered while she began to rub little Kody's back as he sat there on the trainer's examining table, rubbing his eyes.

Angle let out a long sigh, placing his hands on his hips. As gracious as Candice's offer was, he couldn't help but think to Stephanie's insistence that he not use her as child care. Then again, Steph only said that she didn't want the diva watching her two children: Aurora and Andrew. Kyra and Kody were his children from his previous marriage. And besides, why should he even take into consideration what his wife wanted? She was the one allowing her ex-husband to hang out in their home while he was at RAW. This was the second week in a row that he was at the house while he wasn't there. This time it was different though. Kurt's youngest child, Andrew, was at home with his mommy. And if Steph was preoccupied with being sick, Levesque would be left alone with his son; after Kurt had specifically told his wife not to let Paul around their child.

Screw it. If Steph wasn't going to be respectful of his wishes, he wasn't going to be respectful of hers. Besides, it wasn't like he was doing anything wrong by taking Candice up on her offer. She was just watching his children for him while he worked. It wasn't like lines were being crossed. Angle could only hope that the same was true for Steph and her ex.

"Thanks Candice, that's really nice of you." Angle finally replied back after a moment of deliberation.

"It's my pleasure. If you can wait just one second, I just want to go grab my cell."

After flashing a quick smile, the diva left the room. Kurt told the production crew member to tell his father-in-law that he would be there soon. It was when it was only the EMT, Angle and the kids were left in the room that Kyra spoke up.

"Why does that lady talk to you like that, Daddy?"

"What do you mean? How is she talking to me?" Kurt asked letting out a little chuckle because of his daughter's comment about the diva.

"Hi guys, is everything okay?" Kyra said in her best imitation of Candice Michelle from only moments ago. She was giving her voice the same flirty inflection and was even batting her eyes.

"She's just trying to be nice, sweetie. Just be nice to her while she's watching you and your brother. I have some stuff to film backstage and then I've got a match tonight." Angle explained giving his daughter a loving pat on her leg.

"Okay, Daddy." Kyra Marie muttered in a reply. She didn't like the idea of some stranger watching her. She wished that she and Kody could be with their daddy all night. She could be in the scenes backstage. Back when her mommy and daddy were still together in TNA Wrestling, she had been in little segments with them. It was fun.

"Dad, you gonna win?" Kody then asked as he began to pick at his right ear with his hand. The little boy's interest was focused on his father's match.

"No, not to night, little man, Daddy's going to lose because of outside interference." Angle told his son, answering his question.

As soon as Candice Michelle returned to the trainer's room with her cell phone in hand, Kurt left to perform his pre-tapes. It wasn't a minute after her father left the room that Kyra didn't speak up.

"My daddy is married." The child told the diva in a completely blunt tone of voice. She was cutting right to the chase to make sure that Candice knew that her father wasn't interested in her.

"I know, he's married to Stephanie. She's very nice." Candice replied back while taking a seat in a chair that was right next to the examining table in which both Kyra and Kody were sitting on.

"They have a baby too." Kyra quickly mentioned, folding her arms across her chest.

"Yeah, I know they do. I've watched Andrew before. He's really cute."

The diva couldn't help but laugh at how Kurt's oldest child was behaving. For a child that couldn't be over the age of six, she sure didn't miss a beat. Candice wondered if the fact that she had a small crush on Angle was obvious to his little daughter, was it also quite apparent to him as well.

* * *

"Mommy, I want you to tuck me in!" Aurora whined while being held in her father's arms as he ascended the stairs with her. He was right behind Steph while she was carrying baby Andrew, cautiously watching her in case it looked like she would fall.

"You don't want Daddy to tuck you in? Mommy needs to get your brother ready for bed." Stephanie explained in heavy breaths.

She was having some relief from the constant vomiting and it had allowed her to build up enough strength to start doing her job as a mother. Still, she was in no way back to her normal self. Paul had been a total God send.

Levesque had spent the whole day looking after both children, helping her prepare dinner, picking up the baby for her when she was too weak; and all of this without any hesitation. He even seemed happy when she awkwardly asked if he would stay in one of the guest rooms over night because of her fear that she would get sick in the night and not be able to take care of the baby or Aurora in they needed care.

"I want you and daddy boff to tuck me in; you and Daddy together." The three year old specified the moment they had all reached the second floor.

"Sweetie, Mommy needs to take care of your little brother first. He needs a diaper change and then I have to put his pajamas on him and put him in his crib. How about you let Daddy get you ready for bed and tuck you in first and then I will come in after to say goodnight?"

Aurora huffed air out and began to shake her head in objection to her mother's proposal. It was so upsetting that her mommy wanted to tuck baby Andrew into bed before being with her. She was her mommy first before Andy even came out from hiding inside Mommy's tummy. She should also be first for Mommy's attention.

"No Mommy, I want you!"

"Steph, why don't you go ahead and get her ready for bed. I can take care of the baby and then switch to say goodnight to Aurora." Paul offered before he gently set Aurora down her feet.

"Are you sure?" Asked Stephanie looking directly into her former husband's eyes.

She was still taken aback by how willing he was to take care of her one year old son. The baby wasn't his responsibility. Steph would hate to think that because of her sickness she was imposing on Paul. Having to help her with the baby had to be taking away from his time with Aurora.

"Yeah, just give me the baby and take care of our daughter." Levesque commented back holding his arms out toward her.

There were a few seconds of hesitation before Steph handed over her son. Unlike the last time Paul had taken the baby into his arms, this time, Andy let out a long whine. It was one thing to be taken out of a constrictive playpen but quite another to be taken out of his mommy's arms.

"All right, kiddo. Let's get a fresh diaper on you before we call it a night." Paul told the one year old while he made his way from the hallway into the nursery. Thankfully, when his mother was out of his sight, the child's whining ceased.

With her baby being taken care of, Stephanie went with Aurora into her bedroom and began to guide her through her usual bedtime routine. First, the three year old was able to choose which pair of pajamas she was going to wear from a draw full of colorful nightwear. Her selected choice was a pajama set featuring a handful of Disney princesses, after all, she was a princess so it was only fitting that she wore those pajamas. Steph sent her to her bathroom to brush her teeth like she had been taught while Steph slowly peeled back her bedding so that she could get in when she returned.

"Hop into your royal bed, Princess." Steph told her child with a smile the moment she walked back into her bedroom with nice clean teeth.

At her mother's request, Aurora ran across her bedroom and physically hopped right into her bed. Stephanie, who was sitting on the side of the bed, instinctively gave her little girl a kiss on the bed before she brought the covers up over her body. Knowing exactly what came next, Steph leaned over to the nightlight by her bed and flicked it on.

"Mommy?" Aurora asked aloud while she grabbed hold of her favorite pink teddy bear that was sitting propped up against her bed board on the edge of the bed.

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"When you gonna come wif me to stay out my daddy's house? Why I have to go byself? You stay wif Andy's Daddy and him. When is it Daddy and me turn?" The three year old questioned, cocking her head to the side slightly while hugging the bear tight. This was a question that had been whirling around inside of her little head since they had started getting ready for bed.

Steph felt herself let out a small sigh. She could feel her heard literally ache for her small child. It was clear that she really didn't yet understand the fact that her parents were divorced and what that entailed. Stephanie was somewhat at a loss of words. She didn't know what would be the best way to explain to her little girl that her marriage to her father, Paul Levesque, had ended over a year ago. What would she say that would make it seem the least bit fair that Mommy lived permanently with Andrew and Kurt? The fact was, there was no way to make it seem fair to her. Aurora wanted the joy and comfort of having both her parents with her under the same roof without having to choose being with one or the other. Sadly, with the dissolve of the Levesque marriage, that had been taken from baby Aurora before she was even aware of it.

"Mommy's married to Kurt. That means that Mommy has made a promise to stay with and love Kurt forever. You and Andrew live with me because that's where you belong. Mommy loves her babies very much." Steph finally said in an attempt to give her three year old the answer she was looking for in the most appropriate terms.

"You love daddy?" She then asked looking her mother directly in the eyes.

Stephanie flashed her baby girl a warm heartfelt smile and slowly leaned in so that their faces were only an inch or so apart.

"I will always love your daddy because he gave me you." Steph whispered in reply before giving her child a kiss on the forehead.

Aurora smiled and wrapped her arms around her mommy's neck, giving her a nice tight goodnight hug. She had missed that oh so special time with her mommy since she had been away from her for a day while she was with her daddy.

"Who's ready for a bedtime story?" Paul asked poking his head into the bedroom.

"Me!" Aurora shrieked with excitement.

"Steph, don't you want to stay and listen to the story?" Levesque inquired while crossing into the room. He saw his former wife getting up from her seated position on Aurora's bed and was wondering why she was getting up.

"I'm going to be sick." Stephanie muttered in a whisper before she left of Aurora's bedroom in quite a haste. A sea of nausea quickly overcame here without warning

"Mommy sick again?" Aurora asked her father the moment her mother ran out of the room and Paul took his place on his three year old daughter's bed with her.

"Yeah, she's not feeling good. Do you know which book you want to read for bedtime?"

"Goodnight Moon." She answered back without even taking a moment to ponder the selection. Perhaps it was because that book had been the one he was reading to her when she had gotten sick last week. He had not been able to finish it since she had gotten sick.

Levesque got to his feet and made his way over to the pretty little pink and white dresser where a good amount of books were sitting on top of it between two Dora The Explorer book ends. While he was removing the "Goodnight Moon" book, his eyes caught sight of a picture on the other side of the dresser. In a silver frame was a recent picture of Stephanie and Aurora together. The three year old was sitting in her mommy's lap and their faces were right next to each other while Steph was hugging her close.

Seeing the picture of Stephanie with their daughter automatically caused Paul to think back to the kiss the two of them shared earlier in the day. He wanted more than anything for Steph to give in the smallest hint that she had enjoyed it as much as him. Hell, he'd be happy just to know that she even remembered kissing him.

"Hey Aurora, did Mommy say anything about Daddy while she was tucking you in?" He asked his daughter aloud bringing the book back to her bed.

Aurora quickly nodded her head with a big smile on her face. Her reaction caused her father to smile too. He lay down on her bed next to her, and kept his attention on his three year old to hear what she was going to divulge to him about Stephanie.

"Mommy said that she'll always wuv you." She told him in an excited tone of voice.

* * *

"And we are back from our commercial break, all eyes of the WWE Universe are on our main event here tonight." Michael Cole said into his headset when he was signaled that they were coming back from the break.

"What a phenomenal triple threat this is shaping up to be, Cole. The number one contender, Jeff Hardy, the Olympic Gold Medalist, Kurt Angle, and the WWE champion, Chris Jericho, are bringing down the house tonight." Added Jerry "The King" Lawler.

The main event had been given a full twenty minutes, and all three wrestlers had been putting their bodies on the line since the opening bell. Both Jericho and Hardy had each even their usual fast paced, spring board repertoire while Angle was methodical in wearing both men down with his wrestling ability and submission expertise. The match looked like it was about to be over when Kurt had the WWE champion, Y2J trapped in a standing ankle lock in the center of the ring while Hardy was lying on the outside after a failed attempt at a suicide dive to the outside earlier. Jericho, being the wrestling veteran, was able to roll out of the ankle lock, using his momentum to flipped Kurt over. Not only did Angle lose his grip on Chris' ankle, but he also knocked into the ref causing the classic ref bump.

"The referee is out! And wait a minute! It's the All American American, Jack Swagger! Swagger's running to the ring with a chair!" Cole hollered, calling the play by play.

"It looks like Swagger's going to help his mentor and friend, Kurt Angle." Lawler added.

Jack slide into the ring and stood there with the chair, poised to strike as both Jericho and Angle struggled to get to their feet. It looked like Swagger swung wide, clearly trying to hit Chris Jericho but he ducked and it was Kurt that was given a well placed head shot.

"Swagger just hit Angle by mistake! He could have just cost his mentor a win against the WWE champion!" Cole exclaimed.

The moment after the chair made contact, and Angle fell to the canvas, Jack dropped the chair and brought his hands to his head, showing that he did not mean to hit Angle. Chris then look a running charge at the interfering Jack Swagger who was able to turn toward him just in time to use Jericho's momentum in a belly to belly over head throw outside of the ring. With Jericho disposed of, Swagger exited the ring.

"Look who's up on top rope, Cole! It's the Legend Thriller, Jeff Hardy! Angle is still out after that brutal chair shot!" King commented with enthusiasm.

Hardy screamed out while doing his signature, 2-Xtreme Hardy Boyz pose before he jumped off the top rope, flipping in the air, and then coming down hard right across the chest of Kurt Angle.

"Swanton Bomb! Swanton Bomb! Swanton Bomb!" Cole screamed in his usual repeat the finisher name a few times to sell it commentary style.

Angle felt all his breath leave him. The moment he tried to inhale, he felt a sharp stabbing pain. He could only thank God that it was the finish of the match and all he had to do now was lay there and get pinned by Hardy. It felt like a lifetime for Jeff to crawl back over to him. A whole new rush of pain came when he laid across him for the cover. Angle winced while he heard the slow three count of the "groggy" referee. And after the final third count, he heard the sound of the crowd cheering and Jeff Hardy's music blaring in the arena. It was finally over. And now he was going to be with his son getting checked out in the trainer's room.

* * *

Stephanie slowly rose to her feet. She had just seen her way through another long bout of vomiting. It had been so bad that she had actually fallen asleep in between the waves of nausea. And now, after what felt like forever, her stomach was finally calm enough for her to leave her master bathroom.

The first place Steph went to was the nursery that was the closest room to her master bedroom. As quiet as she could, she crept in and peered down at her sleeping son. He was sleeping soundly, sucking slightly on a pacifier that Paul must have put him down with. She didn't care. If Andrew was sleeping soundly, he could have his binky. Satisfied with her findings, Stephanie then made her way to her little girl's room which was not far down the hallway.

Stephanie's heart melted the moment she peered into the semidarkness of her daughter's bedroom. There, framed by the illumination of the little nightlight, was Aurora snuggled up in bed with her daddy. It looked like Paul had fallen sleep reading a bedtime story to her. Steph didn't have the heart to wake him. They looked so cute together and she would be afraid of disturbing their sleeping three year old if she woke him up. Seeing the two of them together asleep brought back the memories of Aurora's infancy; those sleep deprived nights where if it was Paul's turn to be up with the baby, she would find him sitting with her in the nursery glider asleep. Those memories were specially close to her heart. It had been right before their family's unraveling; the last happy memories she had of her marriage to him.

After gazing on at the tender father-daughter scene, Steph quietly left her place at the doorway to her child's room and made her way back through the darkness to her own bed.

* * *

Paul's eyes blinked open. He was only half awake. The fact that he was looking up at the ceiling of a slightly illuminated room caused him to turn his head to see who he was feeling lying on his chest. It was his little girl. He had fallen asleep while tucking her in again?

Levesque closed his eyes again and sighed. He didn't remember putting a nightlight in the room that he made for her. Maybe he just didn't remember it because he was so tired. He had to get back to his own master bedroom. There was no way he could spend the whole night on Aurora's single bed with her and not be sore the next day. Carefully, with his eyes still closed, Paul began to slide out from under his daughter. He almost ended up falling onto the carpet floor below, but managed to catch himself. Getting to his feet, he quietly began to navigate from the dimly lit room to the completely darkened hallway. Paul didn't even think, he was still half in his own cloudy dreamlike world. He was letting his instincts take over and guide him through what he thought was the floor plan of the upstairs of his home. Without knowing it, he was shuffling through the veil of darkness, right into his former wife's master bedroom through the already open double doors.


	41. Chapter 41

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-One

The first thing that Paul realized when his eyes opened was that there was daylight in the room. Then, as his sleepiness began to wear off, he noticed that the ceiling he was looking up at was vaulted much unlike the flat ceiling in his own bedroom. When he was just coming to the realization that he wasn't in his room, much less his home, he heard a soft moan and then felt an arm drape over his muscular torso. He inhaled sharply, completely taken off guard that he wasn't alone in the bed. Before he could even lift his head off the pillow and turn to get a look at who he was sharing a bed with, his olfactory system picked up a scent. The smell was not only familiar but one that he had been longing for, for more than a year. It was Stephanie and she was asleep right next to him.

Levesque's body tensed. He could feel his heart begin to race the minute he felt Steph's head gently rest on his hard left pectoral muscle. Paul couldn't believe that he had gotten into bed with her last night. He really must have been out of it to confuse the Angle home with his own. Perhaps he had been confused because it was the second night in a row that he had fallen asleep with his daughter and had to get up and go to his own bed in the middle of the night.

Without even thinking of the consequences of waking his former wife, Paul instinctively tilted his neck forward and nestled his large nose into her brown hair. He breathed in deep. The remnants of her favorite perfume filled his nostrils, causing memories of their past intimacies to flood his mind. The fact that the two of them were again in a bed together only made those terrific memories all the more vivid. A smile registered on his face. He slowly changed his viewpoint of his former wife, so that he could silently move in and steal a small kiss during her slumber. But before he could get close enough to bring his lips to hers, she suddenly rolled over to her side of the bed and let out a long sigh. She had always been prone to changing her position during sleep and things hadn't changed.

With the his view of her changing to just her back, reality began to sink in and he realized how much explaining he would have to do if she woke up and found him in her and Angle's bed. It would most definitely not be a conversation to go in his favor. Who knows, she might even accuse him of trying to take advantage of her while she was sleeping. He didn't want that. Levesque longed to be intimate with her when she was awake and willing to. This was his chance to get out of there before she would even know he was there.

Trying his best not to further disturb her rest, Paul slowly eased himself toward the edge of the king size bed. Once there, his right leg and arm emerged first from the bed sheets before the other pair followed suit. He managed to remove himself from the bed without even causing her to stir slightly. His clothing was lying in a heap on the floor right. He must have undressed on autopilot while he was half asleep. Levesque quickly gathered up all his garments, making sure not to leave anything as evidence that he had in fact spent the night in the master bedroom.

And then, he silently crept out of the room through the already open double doors. Traveling down the hall, he quickened his pace, not even stopping to check in the baby's nursery or even in his own daughter's room. Paul's destination was the closest guest room in relation to his little girl's room. It was the room he would have chosen if he had indeed spent the night in one of the Angle guest rooms like he was suppose to.

He let out a sigh of relief, knowing that he had gotten to where he was suppose to be without arousing any suspicion. A decorative clock on the dresser of the guest room, where he had set his clothing, told him that it was only 6:30. He must have awoken right at sunrise. He was lucky. Paul knew that if he had slept later the kids would already be awake and would have both immediately sought to have their mother tend to them.

Levesque let no time go to waste. He pulled back the bed sheets and let them lay in a crumpled mess in the center of the bed after throwing the decorative pillows off to the side. The two head pillows, he gave each a hard punch to flatten them, so that it looked like he had spent the full night sleeping in the bed. When he was satisfied with his staged guest room, he helped himself to a nice hot shower in the bathroom he had used last week when he spent the night.

While the warm water rinsing clean his glistening muscular body felt nice, it was nothing compared to how great it was not only hearing from his baby girl that her mommy was still in love with him, but also the fact that he had spent most of the night sleeping in bed with her. He didn't want this time with the two of them to end. Angle's eminent return was looming over him like a baby grand piano hanging over head. Kurt could return at anytime now, like the preverbal piano that could come careening down right on his head when he least expected it. Paul did his best to push those thoughts out of his mind. He wanted to enjoy the last few hours he had with Steph and their daughter before Angle's arrival home and his departure for the SmackDown tapings.

* * *

For the first time in days, Stephanie awoke with a smile on her face. She had just had the best night of sleep that she had had in days. Not once did she wake up in the middle of the night and have to go running to the toilet. Her sleep had been peaceful and uninterrupted. She even remembered her dream; it had to be a dream because she felt like she had been snuggling up with her husband in bed, and she knew very well that Kurt was away overnight because of RAW. So the comforting feeling of cuddling up to the man she loved had to be just a lovely dream.

Steph was cautious when she first got out of bed. She was just waiting for the nausea to set in but to her surprise, it was at bay. After donning her robe and tying it in the front, she casually went about her usual morning routine, her first stop being the nearby nursery.

"Good morning my sweet baby boy!" Stephanie gushed the moment she laid eyes on her youngest child.

Little Andrew had been lying on his back in his crib with his feet running back and forth over the wooden rails of his crib. The moment he had heard his mother's voice and then saw her looking down at him, he quickly got to his feet and returned a happy gaze at her.

"Good morning, Mommy, you feel better?"Aurora exclaimed in a very cheerful tone of voice. She had entered the nursery the moment she heard her mother's voice from her bedroom. The three year old was definitely happy to see her mommy up and taking care of her and her brother after being so sick the majority of yesterday.

"Hi sweetie, yes I'm feeling much better. Is your daddy up?" Steph answered back with a smile after she laid Andy down on his changing table.

"I dunno, I watch cartoons now?" The little girl requested coming back with a question of her own. Her favorite morning activity was watching her morning preschool shows.

"I'll be down in a few minutes after I finish changing the baby and then I'll check on your daddy. Then I'll come down and put your show on for you."

Satisfied with her mother's reply, Aurora left the nursery allowing Steph to focus on finishing the diaper change. And then, with Andrew on her hip, she left the nursery en route to the part of the house where the guest rooms were located. She stopped halfway down the hall when she saw her former husband emerge from one of her guest bathrooms with just a towel wrapped around his waist.

"Hey, good morning, feeling better?" Levesque asked with a warm smile the minute he caught sight of his ex-wife approaching him in the hall.

Steph felt her lips form an instinctual smile. It happened automatically when she laid eyes on her former husband, the guy that had been so nice and helpful to her yesterday. She didn't know what she would have done without him there.

"Yes, I'm feeling a lot better. I hope I'm finally reaching the end of whatever illness I had. If you want to get dressed and come down stairs you can help me look after the kids while I cook us some breakfast." She proposed.

"Sounds good, I'll meet you downstairs." Paul quickly replied back before he traveled down the hallway and disappeared into his self-appointed guest room.

Stephanie didn't have to watch the children for very long before Levesque came downstairs to take over. It was when she saw him in the same clothes that he had been wearing yesterday that Steph remembered that she still had the shirt of his that he had been wearing during his last visit at the house when Aurora had thrown up on him. She had washed it and left it folded in the laundry room. So before she started making breakfast, she ventured to the laundry room to retrieve the shirt to give to him.

"Oh wow, thanks." Levesque said aloud the moment he was being handed his polo. He quickly accepted it and began the process of changing shirts.

The light blue polo was handed to him neatly folded and looked like it had just been bought at the store. Looking at it, you would never have known that it had been covered in vomit only last week. Having Steph hand him the fresh clean shirt reminded him of when she had bought it for him. During their marriage, every additional piece of clothing he had that wasn't a t-shirt was bought for him by Stephanie. She had cared about him enough to pick him out new dress shirts and pants and fold or hang them right in his closet for him. He missed being cared for and looked after by her. Angle was surely getting the same treatment now. The difference was, of course, that the Olympic Twerp probably didn't appreciate it.

"Daddy, come back and watch me pway." Aurora requested the moment she noticed when she looked away from her morning cartoons and saw that her daddy was no longer sitting next to her at her doll house. He was now on the other side of the living room intervening in baby Andy's attempt to pull all of the picture frames off the side glass table next to the sofa.

"I'll be there in just a minute sweetie, Daddy just has to cage this little gremlin." Paul told his daughter as he picked up the exploring one year old and placed him in the playpen.

He wasn't going to keep chasing after the kid each time he toddled or crawled over to something that he could break or hurt himself with. While being put into the playpen was going to piss the little guy off, it was going to give him undivided time with his little girl. Besides, Stephanie would be done making breakfast in no time and then she could go back to tending to her son.

* * *

"What the fuck?" Angle muttered under his breath the moment he drove his white Cadillac Escalade up the driveway to his home.

His eyes were wide as anger surged through his body like a sudden shot of adrenaline. The only reason he muttered his obscenity was because of the fact that two of his children were sitting in the backseat of his SUV.

"What's wrong, Dad?" Kyra asked straining her neck to try and peer out and see what her father was looking at that had him saying bad words under his breath.

Kurt didn't answer his daughter. He was in a trance like stare with his blue eyes focused intently on the red Hummer parked in his driveway, blocking him from even getting his Escalade into his garage. He knew the SUV was Paul's. There was no doubt about it. What the hell was that asshole doing at his house before even nine o'clock in the morning? Did he sleep over again? How could Stephanie allow that?

Angle felt his body shake with anger while he let out a forced exhale that made his chest feel like it was on fire because of his dislocated rib that had been popped back into place. He was tightening his grip on the steering wheel as he slowly let the Escalade continue to creep forward. After everything he had been through since last night: the instigating phone conversation between him and Levesque, Kody's fall that landed him a mild concussion, and then having a rib dislocated thanks to an unforgiving Swanton Bomb from Jeff Hardy; Kurt thought that the aggravation and pain would be all behind him when he got home to his wife and baby son. Now the sight of Paul's Hummer in his driveway was proving different.

"Daddy?" Kyra questioned aloud again.

The SUV came to an abrupt stop and Angle threw the gear shift lever up into the park position before grabbing hold of his key and shutting the engine off. Like a man on a mission, Kurt exited his vehicle, and then quickly opened up the driver side back door and hastily unbuckled both of his children from their safety seats and helped them out of the Cadillac.

Kyra Marie was starting to really get nervous. Her daddy had never ignored her questions before and he looked really upset about something. All the little girl could do was grab her clueless little brother's hand and run after their father as he seemed to be wanting to enter his house from the front door.

With a turn of the house key, Angle was given access to his home. From the moment that he entered the front door with the kids, his eyes were searching for the slightest hint of his wife's ex-husband like a predator stalking and searching for a glimpse of its prey. Once Angle began to walk down the hallway that lead him further into the home, he began to hear an array of voices, two of which were his wife and her three year old daughter's. It was when Kurt reached the kitchen that he was stopped dead in his tracks. He felt like all his breath had been sucked out of him and all he could do was stare at the scene he had stumbled upon.

He felt like an outsider looking in on a family breakfast. Aurora was in her booster seat, feeding herself like a big girl, while Steph was sitting across from her, slowly eating herself. What really caught Kurt's attention was the fact that his baby son was being spoon fed by Levesque while in his high chair that was between him and Steph. What the hell was he doing at his breakfast table? It damn sure wasn't his place to act as Steph's husband and father to Andrew. Was this Paul's devious way to try and make him think that he could replace him? What was even more shocking was that Steph was okay with it. This was like a slap in the face.

"What the hell is this?" Angle finally inquired aloud, cutting through the breakfast table chatter like a knife through butter.

Stephanie's mouth fell open when she saw the look on her husband's face. He looked angry, confused, and hurt all at the same time. It was at that moment that she really regretted not taking the time to phone him first thing in the morning before he got home so that he could have a heads up about sleeping over.

"Kurt, I can explain, I should have called you, Paul-"

"Get out of my house! Now!" Angle screamed completely shouting right over his wife when she tried to explain the situation before emotions got high. It was too late for that. Raising his voice caused Kurt to cringe slightly, his sore ribs giving off an almost crippling pain.

"This isn't just your house, it's Stephanie's too. I was invited to stay over by her, numb nuts." Levesque answered back in a calm voice putting down the toddler spoon as he slowly rose from his seat.

"Paul, please, I don't want this to be made more than what it is." Stephanie said aloud holding her hand out toward her former husband like she was a traffic guard halting oncoming traffic to avoid a collision.

Paul's words caused Angle to shift his eyes to back onto his wife as if he was searching her face for a hint that would tell him if what her ex was saying was indeed true. He really didn't want it to be.

"Yeah, and what is this? He stayed in our house again last night, while I was away? How the fuck does that look, Stephanie?"

Steph's eyes were beginning to well up with tears. She had never meant for it to come to this. If only she could explain to Kurt how much of a help Paul had been to her while she was sick. She wished she could make him understand that Levesque had done them a favor.

"Why don't you keep your damn voice down? You're scaring the kids in the room. Who cares how it looks, Angle? The fact is that I was there for Steph when you weren't." Paul retorted back, keeping the volume of his voice in check.

"Mommy!" Aurora called out in fear, holding her arms out in the direction of Stephanie, signaling her urgency to be near her.

"It's okay, sweetie, don't cry. Don't be afraid." Steph whispered through her own tears at little Aurora who looked to be terrified by the heated standoff between her father and step-father.

"I took better care of Steph, my daughter, and your kid than you have the course of the single year you were married. And that is true, Kurt Angle, it's damn true." Levesque then added giving the slight hint of a smirk while he spoke the words that he knew would really get under his adversary's skin.

Paul was playing the situation completely calm, cool, and collected. It was the first time that he had had the upper hand going up against Angle with Steph present to see it. He wasn't going to ruin it by acting the role of fool that Kurt was already playing to a tee.

What Paul didn't count on was that Angle didn't come back with his own rebuttal. The Olympic gold medalist actually sprang into action and rushing toward him like a linebacker moving in for a tackle in what seemed like a blink of an eye.

"Oh my God, Kurt!" Stephanie screamed as her husband's muscular body slammed into the side of the baby's high chair tray with such force that it would have tipped it over if Steph hadn't had the quick reflexes of her own to grab it.

When finally Angle made contact with his intended target, it was in the form of a takedown. Under normal circumstances, Paul would have used his power as a body builder to hold his own, but it all happened so fast that he didn't have any time to react. And then, when Paul was on the kitchen floor, he was met with a barrage of right and left fists that were so hard and so relentless that he had no choice but to cover up.

The pain in his chest that was caused by his immediate action, Kurt considered a small price to pay for finally giving Paul the ass kicking he had been needing for a long time. All Angle could think about was the thought of Levesque having his wife behind his back while at the same time playing daddy to his one year old son. The torturous thoughts fueled his aggressive assault like excelsior being thrown on an already uncontainable fire.

"Kurt, stop it! Get off of him! Please, Kurt! You're going to hurt him! Get off!" Steph continued to holler as she began to try her best to pull her husband out of his position over her former husband. She even tried pounding her fists against his back, hoping that it would snap Angle out of his rage.

"Get the fuck off of me!" Screamed Paul in a muffled voice while he continued to try his best and shield his face from Angle's onslaught.

By now all four of the children were crying. Kyra and Kody were standing right where the hallway met the kitchen while Aurora and Andrew were still in their seats. Steph was getting angry now by her husband's complete disregard for her begging him to stop. With all of her might, she was finally able to pull Kurt off Paul.

"Their my fucking wife and son! You think you can just come in my house and take what's mine?" Angle yelled as Steph did her best to push him back away from Paul who was still lying on the kitchen floor.

And then, seemingly out of nowhere, Stephanie's right hand, which had the swiftness of the tackle, smacked hard against Kurt's left cheek. The sound of the slap echoed through the spacious house and it caused everything to come to a halt. Angle looked dumbstruck. He brought his left hand to his face, feeling the warm flesh that had just been hit by his own wife. Kurt's eyes shot a piercing stare directly at her.

Tears were streaming down Stephanie's face that were there not just because of the fight, but also because she had slapped the man she loved. This was the first time in their marriage that things had ever gotten physical between her and Kurt. And now, she felt like she had just crossed a line that she really wished she hadn't.


	42. Chapter 42

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-Two

Angle's blue eyes glazed over. He sharply sucked in a small bit of air causing his chest to feel like it was on fire. As hard as his wife had slapped him, it felt like a tickle in comparison to how sore his ribs were.

"I should sue your ass!" Levesque barked, finally sitting up after having his back pinned to the kitchen floor due to the Olympic gold medalist's onslaught.

Paul's left eye was a nice shade of pink and was already beginning to swell. A small trickle of blood dripped from his nose. He was feeling a little out of it and because of that, he hadn't attempted to get to his feet.

"I'm so sorry." Steph professed, wiping away a tear each time it managed to escape from her eyes. She was concerned enough about her former husband to then grab her napkin off the breakfast table and bend down next to him, wiping away the blood from his face.

Kurt was gob smacked. He couldn't believe that Stephanie, his wife, was apologizing to Levesque when he, her current husband, was the one she just slapped. Here he was, coming home after almost having his ribs caved into his chest and Steph was busy tending to her ex-husband's little bloody nose. The guy deserved what he got, and Kurt wasn't sorry for attacking him in the least. Paul had no business even being there. What was really pissing Angle off was the fact that Steph didn't seem to see that.

"This is bullshit." Angle finally muttered aloud. His voice was quivering from the overwhelming anger that he was trying his best to contain.

Kurt's words caused Stephanie to look in his direction. Her eyes widened when she saw that he was actually attempting to walk out of the kitchen.

"Kurt!" She called after him hoping that it would beckon him back.

She felt sick to her stomach due to the turn of events that had just transpired between her former and current spouse. With all she had endured the last four days, the last thing she wanted was unneeded drama between the two men; But it was more than that now. Her husband had attacked Paul right in front of all of their children. Kurt obviously couldn't keep his promise to her that he would try and be civil toward Aurora's father.

"Kurt, where are you going?" Steph inquired again after she saw that he was not deterred from leaving the kitchen.

He was already passing into the hallway entrance where his two older children were still standing worried sick. He didn't even acknowledge them. The fact that she had slapped him must have really upset him. She really wished she hadn't hit him. Though she did have to diffuse the situation, and her slapping him across the face had done that.

Stephanie felt torn. On one hand she had her baby girl, Aurora, crying still in her boaster seat while her daddy was still getting his bearings on the floor, and on the other hand, her husband seemed to be walking away. Should she go after Kurt or stay and smooth things over in the kitchen?

"It's okay, sweetie. It's all over, everything is okay now." Steph assured her daughter the moment she stood back up and went to tend to her.

The moment she had heard the front door open and slam shut, she knew that Kurt was leaving to go blow off some steam. If she would have followed him and pressed him to deal with the issues right then, it could make things worse. The best thing was for her to give him some space. He would be back and then they would deal with their problems.

"See how wonderful your new husband is? Attack me without any provocation really shows some nads." Paul complained in a strained voice as he struggled to get to his feet.

Steph was focused on comforting the children. It was all she could do to keep her own feelings at bay. Besides, it was her responsibility as a mother to love and protect her children. After some assurance, hugs and kisses, Aurora was over it. The only thing that baby Andrew needed was to be held by his mommy. It was Kyra and Kody that were still upset.

"Why did Daddy leave?" Kyra asked her stepmother aloud. Her little brown eyes were still filled with tears as she inquired about her father leaving the house.

Stephanie instinctively walked over to where Kurt's children were still standing. She knew that she just couldn't worry about her two biological children. Kyra and Kody became part of her responsibility when she married their father.

"It's okay, honey. Your daddy was just upset and he went out to calm down. He'll be back soon, okay?" Steph assured her little stepdaughter, gently running her hand over Kyra's brown locks of hair to emphasize her words.

Kyra wiped her eyes and slowly nodded to signal that she understood what was being told to her and her little brother. Kody's reaction was to move toward Stephanie and wrap his arms around one of her legs. It was obvious that he considered her to be his stand in parent when neither his father nor mother was there.

"Daddy, you hurted? You need Booboo Bunny?" Aurora asked her father. She was very fond of the pink cloth bunny that was wrapped around a cold block and lived in the freezer.

"I'm okay, sweetie, just a small booboo but your daddy is tough."

Aurora's eyes stayed focused on the swelling of her daddy's face. She also took notice of the bloody napkin that her mommy had given to him after wiping his nose. She couldn't figure out why Andrew's Daddy was mad at her daddy. Was her daddy being bad? It didn't seem like he had done anything naughty. Was Mommy going to be mad too? And if Mommy got mad, was Daddy not going to be allowed to visit her anymore?

"Steph?"

Paul called out to his former wife when she suddenly, set her youngest child on his wobbly feet, and ran out of the kitchen. Levesque, of course, knew immediately that her nausea had returned and that she was going to lose her breakfast. The illness was still in her system.

"Keep an eye on the baby." Directed Paul in a mutter when he passed by Kyra who was the oldest of the children.

Levesque was compelled to check on his ex-wife. He didn't know how severe the vomiting was going to be since it was pretty bad yesterday morning. When Paul approached the bathroom, sure enough, Stephanie was leaning over the toilet retching.

"I really thought the vomiting was behind you. Is there anything I can do?" He offered while coming in close to her and gently rubbing her back.

Paul let out a sigh, waiting patiently for Steph to give her reply. She had to wait until the vomiting relented before she was even able to speak. When it finally did, Stephanie first let out a moan and then brought her right hand to her face, wiping away a few beads of sweat that had formed on her forehead.

"You've really done enough. I'm sure you'd like to stop at home before leaving for the SmackDown tapings. Besides, Kurt could be coming back home at any time. I think it would be best if you weren't here for his return." Steph finally said in a hoarse voice.

"Are you sure that you're going to be okay being alone with four kids? Do you at least want me to carry you to one of the sofas in the living room?" Levesque then offered.

"No, I'm just going to stay in here by the toilet for a little while. I don't think I'm done getting sick. If you would though, could you please put Andrew in his playpen before you leave?"

The second after making her request, she was overtaken by a wave of nausea that consisted of three painful retches that made all of her abdominal muscles ache.

"Yeah, sure, no problem." He replied softly before he started to leave the bathroom.

"Wait, Paul?" Stephanie spoke out quickly in a raspy voice. She had managed to fight off her queasiness just in time to call after him.

"Yeah?"

"I just wanted to say again how sorry I am about Kurt's behavior. I'm sure that if he knew about the circumstances of you being here, how you've helped me; he wouldn't have been so upset." Steph explained in a hoarse voice as she tried her best to give him a kind smile.

Levesque simply gave her a nod. It was all he could do to acknowledge her without letting a smart ass comment about Mr. Gold medalist slip out of his mouth. A comment like that would only upset Stephanie. She was already under enough stress because of her persistently lingering illness.

Paul did what she asked of him. His daughter and Angle's two older children followed him into the living room where he deposited baby Andrew into the safe constraints of the playpen.

"Daddy, we pway now?" Aurora asked with a hopeful smile. She was finally beginning to get over the traumatic event she and the other children had just witnessed and was ready to get back to having fun with her very own daddy.

"No sweetie, Daddy has to go to work. You look after Mommy. Okay?"

"Okay, you coming home soon?" The three year old inquired with a question of her own.

The sweet voice of his baby girl asking if he was coming back to be with her was almost heartbreaking. She defined her home as the house she shared with her mommy and she wanted him there too. It was all the more clear to him that at the tender age of three, Aurora Rose could not grasp the idea of divorce. Paul would do anything for the chance to erase his past indiscretions so that his daughter would never have to be faced with having divorced parents.

"We'll see each other again soon, sweetheart. I promise." He answered back in a voice full of love as he gave her a quick but tight hug.

While Kyra and Kody settled in the living room in front of the television, it was Aurora that followed her father all the way through the house and to the front door. With his previously worn shirt in his hand, Paul let himself out the front door before instructing his three year old to lock the door behind him.

It was when he climbed into the driver seat of his Hummer that he leaned himself forward toward the steering wheel so that he could get his cell phone out from his back pocket. A quick search of his contacts yielded the number of his former in-laws. Despite the possibility of Vince answering the phone, Paul was willing to take his chances. He didn't feel comfortable leaving Stephanie by herself with four children while she was that sick. If he told Linda of the situation, he was sure she would race over to give her daughter a hand.

"Hey Linda, this is Paul, how are you?" Paul asked politely, letting out a sigh of relief. He was happy to hear Mrs. McMahon's voice answering the phone rather than her husband.

"Hello Paul, I'm doing fine, thank you. I must confess that I'm surprised to hear from you. Is everything okay?"

"Well that's why I was calling you. I just got finished visiting with Aurora and Stephanie this morning, and Stephanie is really sick. I'm worried about her being alone with not just the two kids but Angle's kids as well. Do you think you could head over and give her a hand with the kids?" Levesque reported into his cell phone while at the same time he began to slowly back his Hummer out of the long driveway.

"She's sick and all by herself with the kids? Is Kurt not there with her?" Linda asked with concern as she rattled off the two questions one after another without giving her former son-in-law time to respond.

"No, he came home, pitched a fit, and stormed out of the house like a two year old. I would stay and take care of things with Steph, but I have to be en route to the SmackDown tapings."

Mrs. McMahon didn't even choose to question what would cause Kurt to be upset enough to leave his sick wife with four children to look after. She didn't want to further trouble Levesque. After all, her daughter's welfare was no longer any of his concern. The fact that he cared enough to call her was honorable enough.

"Well I appreciate you calling me. I'll be right over there. Thank you, Paul." Linda responded.

"All right, you take care. Bye." Paul said into the cell phone before ending the call, setting the phone in the nearest cup holder, and then turning his attention to driving the SUV.

* * *

"Who was that?" Vince asked the moment he entered his commodious kitchen where his wife was standing.

He had heard the home phone ringing but his wife had been quicker to answer it since he was so preoccupied with looking over SmackDown rewrites. Steph had certainly been slacking on her responsibilities as head of creative development. SmackDown was a mess and it was being taped in a matter of hours. Sure, they had cut it close before with revisions and rewrites, but never without Stephanie's direct involvement.

"It was Paul." Linda replied placing the small cordless phone back into its charging dock.

"Paul who, what's the last name? Heyman? Wright?" Vince asked in an annoyed tone of voice in response to his wife's vague disclosure of the identity of the caller.

"Levesque, you know, your granddaughter's father, your former son-in-law." She told him with a slow and deliberate head shake. She couldn't believe that he wouldn't immediately think of the man who he had once given Stephanie away to before thinking of Heyman or the Big Show.

"Oh, what did _he_ want?"

McMahon's tone of voice shifted from that of frustration to obvious disappointment. Paul Levesque was the very last person he wanted to hear from. He could only wonder why he was calling them out of the blue.

"He called to voice his concern about Stephanie. Apparently, she's still sick and by herself with all four children."

"Where's Kurt? Did you call him? If Steph's sick, I'm sure he's taking care of it. He should be home now from RAW. Levesque needs to mind his own business. Stephanie isn't his concern anymore; she's got herself a real husband and father for her children." Vince proudly proclaimed.

"He said Kurt wasn't there. I'm going over there, Vince. Paul wouldn't have called me if it wasn't important. If you want, you can try and call Kurt." She told her husband before exiting the kitchen.

Linda was so concerned about her daughter, that she didn't even bother speaking to her husband's spiteful comments about their former son-in-law. He knew how she felt about running down the father on their granddaughter. She didn't have to tell him. Right now, however, her mind was preoccupied with her daughter's welfare.

* * *

Angle sat in a restaurant booth. His back hunched over and both elbows were propped up on the dining table. To all on lookers, Kurt seemed unusually subdued. He was doing his best to fight off the involuntary shaking of his large muscular frame. He was hurting; so much that all he could think about was his ribs. Every breath he took felt like a knife was puncturing his chest. Still, he was stoic. He graciously acknowledged any approaching fan with a polite smile, and an autograph on a napkin if one was presented with a pen. He loved his fans, especially the ones who had supported him through all the hardships he had endured during his professional wrestling career.

Injuries were always the worst for him. It was only during times of pain and agony that his thoughts would drift to those pain killers that he took to make all the pain go away. But he couldn't have them. After his crippling addiction to them back in 2003, he had sworn off of them for good. Abruptly going cold turkey was the hardest thing he ever endured. He was lucky it didn't kill him. Pain killers were the devil tempting him with the promise of relieving him of all his discomfort. He wouldn't give in. Instead, Angle had found solace and relief from a bit of alcohol. It really took the edge off.

"Hi, I'm Angela, I'll be taking care of you this morning. Can I get you something to drink? You look like you could use a cup of coffee." The waitress said to him the moment she approached his table with a pad and pen in her hand that was poised and ready to jot down his order.

"Yeah, that'd be great, but uh, do you mind spiking it with a bit of Bailey's or something?" He asked in a low voice so that only the waitress would hear his request.

Angela looked a little taken off guard upon his request but she gave him a nod and quickly scribbled her shorthand down on the pad of paper before leaving his table.

"Thanks…" Angle muttered before closing his eyes. He then brought his hands to his face. His scruffy facial hair scratched against the palms of his hands.

While he sat there waiting for his spiked coffee, the sound of his smart phone signaling an incoming call with a continuous vibration caused him to grab it and look to see who was calling him. "Incoming call…Vince's cell" was displayed on the touch screen.

Stephanie must have called her father and told him about the altercation between him and Paul. This had to be his father-in-law calling to lecture him about the importance of self-control because of the danger of lawsuits. He couldn't go there right now. Part of the reason Kurt left the house was to get away from the situation. His wife slapping him and then tending to her ex-husband was enough to make him really lose it. It was better that he stayed away and nurse his sore ribs with a bit of alcohol. He would be back in a few hours to smooth things over with Steph.

With his right thumb, Angle touched the "Ignore call" button causing a missed call indicator to be displayed at the top of his phone. He would talk with his father-in-law later.

Waiting for the waitress to return felt like a lifetime. Just when he was wondering how long it actually took for someone to pour a cup of coffee and slip some alcohol in, Angela returned to his table with his beverage.

"Would you like to order anything to eat?" She offered bringing her trusty small pad of paper out from the pocket of her waitressing pouch.

"No, thanks…" Kurt muttered in response bringing the cup of coffee up to his mouth. He wasn't even going to worry about adding any cream or sugar, he just needed relief.

Angela took her cue and left the table Slowly and with some trepidation, the brim of the cup pressed to Kurt's lips and the hot coffee passed over them into his mouth. As soon as he took his first swallow, he exhaled with a smile on his face. Not only did it taste great, but it was definitely going to dull the pain.

* * *

Mrs. McMahon's dark green jaguar sedan slowly pulled up in the driveway of the Angle family home. Linda decided that it would be best to enter the house through the garage. After all, she knew the combination on the keypad, and it would be a less intrusive way of checking in on her daughter without possibly waking her or one of the children up if they were sleeping since she wouldn't have to ring a doorbell.

Only Stephanie's tan Porsche Cayenne was parked in the garage, Kurt's white Escalade was missing from his usual spot on the other side of the garage. It appeared that Paul was right when he told her that Kurt wasn't at the house. What would cause him to leave right after he got back from a show?

Linda could already hear the sound of baby Andrew crying from inside the home when she approached the door that connected the garage to the laundry room area. He must have really been wailing for the sound to carry that far in the spacious home. Not wanting to waste a moment, she let herself into the house, closing the door behind her.

Linda 's first thought was to call out her daughter's name, but with the intensity of the baby's crying, she knew that Stephanie wouldn't even hear her. So she followed the sound of her grandson's cries leading her into the living room where both Kyra and Kody were sitting right next to the pack and play that housed their little half brother. Baby Andy's entire face was beet red and stained with tears, it was obvious that he had been crying for a while. Linda rushed to him and quickly lifted him out of the playpen. His diaper was obviously engorged. Where was Steph? She would never leave one of her children crying with a dirty diaper.

"Where's Stephanie? Is she somewhere in the house with Aurora?" Linda asked Kyra the moment the one year old's crying finally ceased so that her words could be heard.

"They're in the bathroom. Steph's really sick. She keeps throwing up." Kyra reported back while she used her hand to point in the direction of the downstairs bathroom where she knew her step-mother was still laying by the toilet.

"Face is hot." Kody added bringing his own hand to his face to show how he had felt his step-mother's face the last time he and his sister had went into the bathroom.

"Okay, I'm going to go check on Stephanie. I'll be back." Linda explained to her son-in-laws two children as she left the living room with her daughter's youngest child still in her arms.

"Granny!" Aurora called out the moment she caught sight of her grandmother entering the doorway to the bathroom. The three year old ran and hugged her legs.

"Mommy really sick. She too tired to get up." Aurora Rose then explained while Linda's eyes fell upon her daughter.

There was Stephanie lying on the bathroom floor in an almost fetal position. All the color in her face was gone and had been replaced with a pale complexion that resembled the white porcelain toilet bowl that her forehead was pressed up against. Linda couldn't even tell if she was conscious.

"Stephanie, it's Mom." Linda said to her daughter as she approached her.

Her mother's words caused Steph's eyes to slowly open. Her brilliant blue eyes were glazed over like that of a porcelain doll's glassy eyes. She felt terrible. Not only had the sickness not left her body, but it had reached a new level of debilitation. She was so weak from all the vomiting that she couldn't summon the strength to attend to her crying son in the living room.

"I'm so sick, Mom. I'm so weak. My head hurts so bad. Are the kids okay?" Steph croaked as she felt her teeth involuntarily chatter after her words were spoken.

Being a mother of over thirty years, Linda instinctively brought her hand to her daughter's face and immediately knew that she was running a fever. Whatever her daughter had, it was most certainly going to make her dehydrated, if it hadn't already done so.

"The children are okay. I need to change Andrew, but when I finish, I'll be right back to help you up. We need to take you to the E.R."

"We need to call Kurt..." Steph muttered closing her eyes again while she breathed heavy, fighting back the nausea that was trying to overtake her.

"I'll call him after I get you to the hospital. Getting you there as soon as possible is most important."

Stephanie fell silent and simply nodded to show her understanding of her mother's decision to hold off on calling her husband to let her know that they were going to the emergency room. After struggling with this illness for four days, Steph knew without a doubt that she now needed to seek medical attention. Whatever was ailing her, it was much more serious than a common stomach virus. The question was, what was the diagnosis and how could it be treated.

* * *

Kurt walked with a little bit of pep to his step as he made his way through the restaurant parking lot toward his SUV that was parked only a few feet away. He was feeling a whole lot better after three cups of his spiked coffee. A good bit of alcohol in a hot beverage really dulled the pain of his sore ribs. He now felt like he was ready to go home and face his wife after the altercation that had taken place earlier. He had been far too angry and in too much pain to speak his mind then. Now he was going to go home and dialogue with his wife. It wasn't going to be a pretty conversation, but they were going to have it. Things had to be said, and he was going to have no problem laying it out for her.

After Angle got into his Escalade, started the engine, and began to drive out of the parking lot, he heard the sound of his cell phone giving an alert of an incoming text message. His curiosity peaked, and he reached for his phone from his pants pocket to see who was texting him. He smiled when he saw the message on the display.

"Haas told me u fucked urself up last night at the PPV. U alright man?" The text read from the sender Brock Lesnar.

Kurt looked up at the intersection in front of him and made a left onto the main road. Once he was going the speed limit on a road he knew he would be on for a few miles, he looked back down at his phone and started thumbing in his reply to his friend's text message. Angle's large thumbs kept accidentally hitting the wrong keys, causing him to have to delete letters and retype new ones in. With all the effort he was giving his text message, his Cadillac Escalade kept drifting over to the shoulder of the road before he would notice and stir it back into the middle of his lane.

A loud blaring horn broke his concentration causing Angle's eyes to immediately shift to where they should have been looking all along. His eyes widened and he immediately pulled hard on his steering wheel while at the same time slamming on his brakes. His tires squealed as the anti lock brakes kicked in. He had reacted too late.


	43. Chapter 43

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-Three

"What the hell is wrong with you? Didn't you see me stopped?" Screamed an elderly man the moment he got out of his silver Buick.

Angle's white Escalade had slammed into the back of a Buick Lucerne that had been stopped at a stop sign. The luxury car had definitely gotten the worst of the collision: the trunk was crumpled in and both brake lights were shattered. The SUV, however, only had a broken headlight and a dented exhaust grate.

"Hey buddy, I'm really sorry about this. It's going to be fine, no one was hurt, I'll gladly take care of the damages." Kurt answered back calmly while gesturing with his hands as he made his point clear.

"That's right, you are going to be responsible for the damages, how the hell could you have not seen that stop sign?" The man asked pointing his arthritic finger toward the sign only a few feet away.

While the old man was hurling insults at him, Angle's eyes glanced to his rearview mirror and then widened at the sight of flashing red, blue, and white florescent lights. It was a state trooper that was coming up on the accident. Kurt knew that things were about to get even worse for him.

The cop car pulled up directly behind the Escalade, and the cop quickly stepped out of his cruiser in his freshly pressed gray Connecticut State Trooper uniform that was complete with his wide brimmed hat.

"Officer, this man here smashed right into the back of my car! I was stopping for that stop sign right there, and he plowed right into the back of me!" The old man reported to the policeman before the cop even made it to Angle's driver side window.

"Sir, please calm down, I know what happened, I saw the accident myself while I was running radar on the side of the road back there. If you could please just wait inside your vehicle, I will come speak with you after I finish speaking with him." The cop told the elderly man nudging his chin in Kurt's direction.

"I'm going to need your license and car registration." The officer told Kurt.

Angle forced his tongue into his cheek while he struggled to get his wallet out of his back pocket. Once the wallet was free, he opened it, slid his driver's license from behind the clear soft plastic, and handed it to the policeman. His Escalade's registration paper, he kept in a white envelope with his insurance information in the glove compartment. He then handed that over too.

"Mr. Angle, I noticed that you were all over the road back there before you slammed into the back of that man. What was going on?" The cop questioned after scanning Kurt's identification and then his vehicle registration.

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that. You see, my wife is sick at home with the kids and a text came through my cell phone. I know I should have waited to look at it until I got home, but I was worried about them." Angle explained quickly, with a few stammers as he retold the version of the story tailored for the officer.

The entire time Kurt was telling his story, the state trooper was scanning the inside of his Escalade. The focus of his scan fell upon the baby and child seats in the back of the SUV. It made the cop shake his head before he responded.

"I can see you have small children, what if they would have been with you? I'm going to ask you something, Mr. Angle, and I want you to answer truthfully: Sir, have you consumed any alcohol this morning?"

Angle felt a small lump form in the back of his throat. He was taken aback by how quickly the police officer had taken a case of texting while driving and turned it into a possible DUI. But what did he really have to worry about? Kurt knew that he only had spiked coffee. It wasn't like he had been throwing back beer or hard liquor. It was best just to be honest with the guy, especially if he was under the limit.

"I had three cups of coffees that had a little bit of alcohol in them." Kurt openly admitted.

"Would you mind reciting the alphabet for me?" The cop ask in a no nonsense tone of voice causing Kurt to give a chuckle. He couldn't believe this was happening.

"A..B...C...D..E-"

"Backwards, sir." The cop commanded cutting him off.

"Z...Y...umm, X, ah, W, ah...Is-is this really necessary? I need to get going, here. I'm willing to take full responsibility for the accident, okay? I'm-I'm insured." Kurt explained.

"Yes this is necessary, Mr. Angle, I can smell the alcohol on your breath. Under Connecticut law, I am obligated to administer a breathalyzer to you." The policeman informed him.

"And what happens if I refuse to take one?" Angle asked back quickly. He couldn't believe that the cop was actually giving him a field sobriety test complete with breathalyzer.

"Then you will immediately be placed under arrest."

Kurt let out a long sigh before bringing his right hand up to his face to rub both his eyes with his thumb and pointer finger. He was going to have to take the test. Refusing and going to jail wasn't an option. He would take the test, pass it, and go home to Stephanie and the kids.

"I'll take the test..."

* * *

The wide automatic doors opened and closed a few times before Stephanie was able to actually walk into the Emergency Department of Greenwich hospital. The commute there had been long and arduous. Steph was still so weak and Linda had the extra challenge of having to bring along all four children. Due to the lack of seating in the back of the Jaguar, little Kody had to sit on his big sister, Kyra's, lap. Linda drove very slow and carefully due to one of the children not being belted in.

"All most there, sweetheart." Linda encouraged her daughter as she supported Steph with her free arm while skillfully she balanced baby Andrew on her opposite hip while his diaper bag hung from one shoulder.

The three other children were bringing up the rear. Kyra was in the middle, holding both Kody and Aurora's hand at the request of Mrs. McMahon; she didn't want anyone getting lost from the parking lot to their trip through the hospital. Aurora Rose's eyes widened when she saw a nurse in scrubs bring a wheel chair that her grandma helped her mommy sit in.

"Mommy hurted? Aurora asked in a little voice that was full with concern as she approached where her mommy was now sitting in the wheelchair.

"I'll be okay, sweetie. Mommy isn't feeling good so the doctor is going to give me some medicine to help me feel better." Steph assured her three year old daughter.

Linda was helpful enough to handle jotting down all of Stephanie's personal information on the E.R. admission form. All Steph had to do was sign the consent form, and when that was completed, the nurse rolled her into the triage area of the unit to get her vital signs.

Since Mrs. McMahon had to look after four children, she and Stephanie had already decided on the way to the hospital that she and the kids would wait for Steph in the waiting room. The emergency room was a busy place in the hospital, and the last thing the nurses and doctors needed were rambunctious kids getting in the way.

Luckily for Linda, the room for waiting had a small play area for children which would surely keep them pacified during their time there. Kyra and Kody were the first to venture over to the toy area. Aurora, however, seemed a bit hesitant. She was standing right by her grandmother simply watching Kurt's kids play with all the toys.

Steph didn't have to wait long to be seen by a doctor once she finished up with the triage nurse. They had wheeled her into a private room in the fast track area of the E.R. and unlike the usual visitors to the emergency room, the doctor didn't make her wait long.

"It's quite clear that you are extremely dehydrated since you can't keep any nutrients in your system. I'm going to have the nurses start you on an IV of fluids and also get a full blood panel on you to check for any infection. Sound good?" The emergency room doctor told Stephanie, giving his assessment of her situation.

"Yes, thank you."

For the first time in days, Stephanie felt a bit of relief. While no one was crazy about having to give blood, she knew that it was what needed to be done in order to pin point what exactly was making her so sick. She was just ready to start feeling better so that she could get back to being a wife, mother, and businesswoman. Both her personal and professional life were a mess; she vowed that as soon as she started feeling better, she would mend both aspects of her life.

* * *

"Kody, come back here, you can't go back there." Linda told her daughter's step son the moment she caught up with him when he was just about to enter the "Hospital Personnel Only" area of the Emergency Room.

Linda had forgotten how rambunctious little boys could be. She was constantly having to run after her son, Shane, when he was little. Now, in her grandmother years, it was a lot harder keeping up with an active child, especially when she was having to carry around her youngest grandbaby.

"Sit down here next to me. I need to call your daddy and let him know what's going on." Linda directed as she pointed to the seat next to her.

It took a few moments to operate her blackberry since little Andy kept trying to bring his baby hands to the buttons of the cell phone. Finally, she set the phone up to call, and brought it to her ear.

"Hey, this is Kurt, I'm not available right now to take your call. Leave me a message and I'll get back to you."

"Hi Kurt, it's Linda. I had to take Stephanie to the emergency room at Greenwich Hospital because she was so sick. The kids are here with me in the waiting room. Please call me back and get here as soon as you can."

"Is my dad coming here soon?" Kyra asked when she overheard Mrs. McMahon speaking her father's name into the BlackBerry.

"I hope so." She answered back with a hopeful smile.

The sound of her phone ringing caused her to shift her attention back to it. She knew that it was signaling an incoming call, so before she even looked to see who it was, she answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hey honey, how's Stephanie doing? I was just about to leave for SmackDown when I thought I'd call and check in on things."

It was Vince calling to check on his daughter's wellbeing. Not that Linda wasn't happy to hear from her husband, it was just that she was hoping it was Kurt returning her call. It was so unlike him to be out of contact from his wife and family. With Steph being so under the weather lately, Linda had a hard time picturing her son-in-law going off and leaving his sick wife at home with four young children.

"She's so sick. I had to take her to the E.R. at Greenwich Hospital."

"Do they know what's wrong with her?"

"I don't know, I'm in the waiting room with all four children. I just tried calling Kurt but he's not answering his cell phone. I'm starting to get worried that something might have happened to him. It's not like him to disappear like this. He should be here with Stephanie and the kids."

"I'll try calling Kurt again, I wasn't able to get a hold of him earlier either. Then I'll make a call to Laurinatis and the rest of the crew and inform them that I won't be at SmackDown. I'm coming to the hospital. I'll help look after the kids so you can be there for our daughter."

* * *

Paul arrived at the arena right on schedule. While he was physically at work and ready to perform his duties as a SmackDown superstar, his mind was miles away; back in Greenwich Connecticut, to be exact. He couldn't stop thinking about Stephanie and how bad off she was when he had to leave her.

Levesque couldn't help but think back to their marriage, and when she was pregnant with what would have been their second child together. She had been so sick and in need of his love and support, but his mind was then distracted by his meaningless trysts. He had lost her. Steph was no longer his wife, yet he felt concern for her that only a loving husband could feel. That had to count for something.

Paul brought his stride to a halt the moment he heard the familiar voices of the creative team that were coming from around the corner that he was just about to approach. Instead of turning it, Levesque decided to lean his back up against the wall and listen in to the conversation that he was sure would include Steph.

"Laurinatis just passed the word down. Vince isn't going to be there tonight. Word is that Steph is really sick." The lead writer reported to the rest of the team the moment he got off the phone with head of talent relations.

All the WWE employees that were scheduled to be at the SmackDown tapings were arriving. It was customary for the writing team to have a meeting at the arena earlier in the day to go over the final script. They had been waiting for Vince and his cronies to join them.

"I don't blame, Steph, I mean, I would be too because of what's going on at RAW." One of the women writers commented.

"Wait, what happened at RAW?" Another female asked right after with a confused look on her face.

"Well, I heard from one of the RAW pyrotechnic guys who heard from one of the RAW divas that Kurt Angle got a hand job and who knows what else from Candice Michelle right in the trainer's room."

"Oh my God, they did that right at the arena? Poor Stephanie!"

Paul lips pulled into a smile and he let out a small snicker. He loved work place gossip. It was about time someone other than him became the victim of nasty rumors. The fact that it was Angle, was even better. He could only hope that the word would get around to Stephanie when she returned to work at the office. She needed to hear that her "Mr. Wonderful" wasn't so wonderful after all.

* * *

"Who's watching the kids, Mom?" Stephanie inquired, her back darted off the hospital bed as she sat up the moment her mother walked into the room.

"Your father's here and he's looking after the kids so I can be with you. You're already starting to look better, honey. You're getting your color back." Linda pointed out.

"Thanks, but, umm did you get a hold of Kurt? Is he coming here?"

"Your father and I both haven't been able to reach him. I left him a voice mail. Oh, but Paul just called my cell before your father arrived. I let him know that you would be on the mend."

"I can't imagine where Kurt could be that he wouldn't answer his phone. That worries me, Mom. That's not like him." Stephanie said with a voice full of concern.

She was so bothered by the fact that her husband was unreachable by both her parents, that she didn't even process what her mother told her about her former husband calling.

"I'm sure there is an explanation, sweetheart. Maybe his cell phone died. We'll probably hear from him the moment he gets my message." She assured her daughter.

Stephanie could only hope her mother was right. The truth was she was really worried about Kurt, especially after what had went down before he left the house. He had been so upset with her and the situation he had come home to. What if he was purposely ignoring his in-laws' phone calls? What if he was so upset that he was giving up on their marriage?

"Oh, honey, it's going to be okay, don't get upset. You should just concentrate on getting well." Linda quickly told Stephanie the moment she started crying because of her worries.

"The doctor said I was dehydrated and he put me on an IV. I just got my blood taken, they are checking for any infection." Stephanie replied as she turned her arm to show where the nurse had taped a piece of cotton over her antecubital at the elbow bend. She let out a few sniffles, and began to stifle her emotions.

"Well, hopefully they can give you something that will prevent the vomiting until the illness works its way out of your system." Linda added.

"I hope so...Mom, are you sure that Dad can handle the kids by himself? Maybe you should go back out there and supervise."

Before Linda could address her daughter's concern, the doctor returned to the room with papers in his hand that Steph could only assume were the results of the blood test.

"I have the results of the full blood panel. Both your red and white blood cell count were in the normal range which means there is no sign of infection. However, the test did reveal something."

"What is it? Is it serious?" Steph asked sitting up completely straight as her nerves began to take over. Something could seriously be wrong with her for her to be this sick.

"Well if you call being pregnant as being serious, congratulations."

Stephanie's eyes widened after she heard the news that she didn't expect was coming. Suddenly, it all made sense, and she wondered why she hadn't figured it out before. The extreme nausea was shades of her pregnancy before baby Andrew.

"Oh, sweetheart, congratulations! Another little one already? I can't believe it, what a pleasant surprise!" Linda gushed.

"Is the pregnancy normal though?" Steph asked with concern.

"The blood test only revealed that you were pregnant because of a significantly high concentration of the human chorionic gonadotropin hormone in your blood. I'd estimate that you are about three to four weeks. This of course would explain the vomiting you said you were experiencing. You would need to make a follow up appointment with your OBGYN to have further examinations performed."

"Stephanie is just a little worried because she has miscarried before because of extreme morning sickness. Is there any kind of medication you can give her to keep her nausea at bay?" Linda asked.

"I'm sorry, no. The medication doctors used to prescribed actually was found to carry with it a risk of birth defects. The best we can do is hope that treating her dehydration will help curtail the nausea. I'd like to keep you admitted over night and on the IV, just as a precaution. Tomorrow you can go home. Congratulations to both you and your husband."

Tears were again welling up in Stephanie's brilliant blue eyes. While part of the reason she was getting emotional was because she was thrilled to be becoming a mother to a new little life, however, part of her felt a bit of sadness.

Steph was disappointed by the fact that this was yet another pregnancy that she was finding out about without having her husband there with her. It took her back to the feelings she had when she found out that her and Paul were having another baby and he wasn't there for her. Now here she was again, married to another man, impregnated with his second child, and where was he?

* * *

"I want to make my phone call now." Angle muttered in a hoarse voice. He was being lead from the booking and processing area of the local jail.

Kurt felt so embarrassed and ashamed. The breathalyzer test had given him a reading that was just above the legal limit and he was immediately given his Miranda rights and then hauled into booking. His Escalade had to be towed, and his cell phone and wallet had been confiscated. The officers had promised him a phone call after he had his mug shot and finger prints taken.

"Make it quick, Angle." One of the officers told him as he gave him access to a desk phone.

Without even having to think about it, Kurt quickly punched in his home phone number on the dial pad. He needed to get a hold of Stephanie. She was probably worried about him by now, and he needed her to call his lawyer.

"Come on, Steph, pick up." Kurt said aloud in a voice of urgency as the phone continued to ring and ring.

"Shit, where the hell is she?" He blurted out the moment their home voice mail message began to play.

"Steph, it's Kurt, if you're there, pick up. This is important. I'm down at the local jail and I need you to call my lawyer, Mike Santicola. I'll explain everything later, I love you...bye."

"All right, that was your one call, come on." The cop quickly said the moment Kurt ended the call.

"Wait, let me just try her cell phone."

"Sorry, only one personal call."

"Well then at least let me try and call my lawyer myself." Angle pleaded as he was being ushered away from the phone.

"No more calls, you're in here for the day. You can make bail first thing tomorrow. We've got a private cell for you. You should be thankful you aren't with the others." The police officer told him as he lead him toward the holding area.

* * *

"Hey, Kody, you be careful picking her up. She's the same size as you and you're going to fall over." Vince called out when he noticed that Kurt's oldest son was hugging Aurora and lifting her up off her feet much to her delight.

Vince had definitely bitten off more than he could chew with the four children. Even little Andrew didn't want to sit still in his lap, he was dead set on crawling and toddling around his new surroundings. Each time the one year old would get far, McMahon would have to run after him.

"Look, it's Dad on the TV!" Kyra announced aloud as she pointed up at the plasma wall television where a picture of her father in his wrestling gear was being shown while a female news reporter spoke about him.

"And now a breaking story, we have just learned that wrestling celebrity, Kurt Angle, was arrested this morning and charged with driving under the influence. Angle won a gold medal in the 1996 Olympics in freestyle wrestling, and is currently employed by World Wrestling Entertainment ." The woman reported.

"What the hell is this?" Vince hollered as he took notice of the report about his son-in-law.


	44. Chapter 44

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-Four

"Hey Paul, have you talked to Vince or Linda? Any update on how Stephanie is?"

The interrogative sentences were hurled in Paul's direction the moment he had decided to turn the corner of the backstage hallway. They were being asked by the same people who had just been gossiping about his ex-wife's personal life mere moments ago.

Levesque shrugged his shoulders slightly, as if to shrug off the immediate questioning. It surprised him that he, of all people, was being asked for information about Steph's current wellbeing. He was the bitter ex-husband who was no longer a member of the company circle. Where the McMahons' sycophantic bureaucrats that desperate for potential gossip that they were daring to ask him for it?

"You should call either of them and ask them yourself." Levesque tactfully replied.

He didn't want to divulge even the slightest news that he had received from Mrs. McMahon earlier in the day. After how he had been snubbed by those same people after his divorce, he didn't owe them anything. Well, maybe he did owe them some form of gratitude for fostering the rumor of Angle's indiscretions that was most certainly going to get back to Stephanie.

"Well, we were just concerned, because the last we heard, Stephanie had to be admitted to the hospital. We're just hoping that it's not something too serious for Vince to be missing the SmackDown tapings."

Levesque's hazel eyes shifted from their focus on the creative team members to the bland white wall. It was the update on Stephanie's condition that pierced his mind. The last time he talked to Linda, she told him that Steph was on the mend. Why didn't his former mother-in-law tell him that it was serious enough for his ex-wife to be admitted to the hospital?

"Are you all right, Paul?" One of the female writer's asked after seeing some of the color drain from Levesque's face. It was obvious that something one of them said got to him.

"Yeah, I gotta go." He replied under his breath before walking away from the group of writers.

Like he had done so many times before, Paul followed the backstage hallway to the locker room that WWE had designated to the male wrestlers. Walking through the door, immediately, Adam Copeland and Jason Reso both turned their attention away from a laptop screen to watch him enter the room. There was an awkward vibe coming from the two multi tag team champion kayfabe brothers which was evident by the way they were staring him down.

"Hey boys, did I catch you looking at porn? Is that why you two have that deer in the headlights look on your faces?" Levesque asked with a chuckle after dropping his black duffle bag in one of the wooden cubbies. He then made his way over to the computer to take a peek at whatever nude bombshell was gracing the computer screen.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Paul. Unlike you, we aren't hard up. We get the real thing on a regular basis." Christian scoffed as he brought his hand to the laptop's touch pad to close out the internet browser.

"Why are you even here, Reso? I thought you were on the ECW roster." Paul commented back, slapping Jay's hand away from the touch pad as he leaned in to actually see what was on the internet site that Christian wanted to close out.

"I was transferred to SmackDown, and since when is this any of your business?" Reso replied before looking over at Adam who simply shrugged his shoulders and rolled his eyes.

"Kurt Angle arrested for DUI." Levesque read aloud from what looked to be the TMZ website.

That had to be the greatest article title he had ever read. What made the report even better was the mug shot of Angle that TMZ had gotten a hold of and posted just below the headline, before the contents of the article. How far the "mighty" had fallen, and so rapidly too.

"Holy shit, what a jackass! No wonder Vince is MIA for the tapings tonight. He's probably shitting a brick right now! I guess Mr. Wonderful Son-In-Law isn't so wonderful anymore!" Paul laughed through a wide smile.

News of Angle's arrest made every single time he had to suffer through Vince's blind praise of him completely worth it. Kurt was not only bringing shame to WWE, as a company, but also the McMahon family since he was married into it. With a sudden surge of happiness, came a small amount of gratitude to Angle. The dumbass pulled his boner all on his own. Paul had nothing to do with it. This scandal was like a bolt from beyond, like God was listening to Paul. Kurt Angle was slipping the noose right over his own thick neck, and all Paul had to do was sit back and watch him hang himself.

"You're a real son of a bitch, Levesque." Edge sneered through gritted teeth, slamming his laptop shut.

"That may be so, but at least I'm not a stupid son of a bitch." Levesque quickly answered back with a smirk and a chin nudge toward the computer. He would always have the intellectual edge over Kurt Angle, no one could dispute that.

With his smart comment said, Paul turned his back on Edge and Christian and began to walk toward the locker room door when Christian decided to answer back:

"That's disputable."

His remark caused Paul to cease his stride and turn back around to attempt to give the final word on the matter.

"No, that would be your worth to this company." Levesque told him without even blinking any eye. Before either Adam or Jay could muster a comeback, Paul left the locker room.

The moment after Levesque finished gloating about Kurt's DUI, his thoughts shifted to his former wife. With Angle in jail, that left Steph all by herself and on the mend from an illness. This was his chance to be there for her, without any possibility of any interruptions from Kurt whatsoever. He had to take it.

Paul quickly found John Laurinatis backstage with a number of his fellow employees hovering around him. The guy looked overwhelmed. Anyone would be if they were unexpectedly saddled with all of Vince McMahon's duties.

"I need you to take me off of tonight's card." Levesque told Laurinatis as he inserted himself into the group of people, ending the constant chatter.

"What? You're joking, right? Vince finalized the card. You are a part of the fatal four way main event. I have to get everything set up for the show tonight, it's too late to revise it." John told him hastily before letting out a hard exhale. This was the most pressure he had ever been under working for Mr. McMahon.

"Look, I'm leaving. I'm worried about my ex-wife and my daughter. Now I can either do a backstage skit to explain me being taken out of the match tonight, or I can just walk out now and you can come up with something yourself. I can tell you which one will go over better. Isn't that what you're worried about, Johnny? You know that Vince will have your head if you screw up anything on the show."

Paul knew exactly what to say to Johnny Ace to get his way. The guy was definitely most concerned about getting through the taping tonight without any problems. Because of his experience, Levesque knew that with SmackDown, the stakes weren't nearly as high as they were for RAW's production. RAW was live and there could be no mistakes made. At least with SmackDown, WWE had a few days to edit the show before it aired; there was a bit of leeway.

"Fine, we'll set up a backstage attack, but if McMahon gets pissed, it's your ass!" Laurinatis barked back pointing his finger right at Paul to physically show where the blame would be shouldered. It was settled, and after his backstage skit, Paul could go back to Connecticut.

* * *

"Mommy, what this?"

Aurora Rose's hand gently touched the IV tube that was sticking out of the inside of her mother's arm at the elbow bend. She had never seen the tubing before and was curious to know what it was.

"It's just a tube to give me medicine so I feel better and can come home to be with you and Andy." Steph told her while she tenderly brushed back her daughter's hair away from her face.

Linda had brought the children up to see her as soon as she was settled in the private hospital room she would be staying in overnight. It was because of Aurora's insistence to see her mommy once more before they left that all of the children were there in her hospital room.

"You come home wif us?" Aurora then asked bouncing a little on the side of the hospital bed she was sitting on.

"You're going to stay with Gran and Pop over night, and then Mommy will be home tomorrow after she rests here." Stephanie promised as Linda helped the three year old off the side of the bed.

"Were you able to get a hold of Kurt, Mom? He better have a good excuse as to why he hasn't shown up." Steph then said looking up at her mother who immediately looked over at Vince for direction.

"Yeah, where's my dad? He was on TV downstairs." Kyra inquired piggybacking her question onto her stepmother's.

"Wait, what? He was on TV? Did something happen? Is he okay?"

"Linda, why don't you take the kids home while I talk to Steph." Vince told his wife before he held out their grandson for her to take.

Stephanie's eyes were wide as a million frightening thoughts began to race through her head; the worst of which concluded in her being a pregnant widow with two small children to look after all by herself. She was terrified by what her father had to disclose to her in private, but she did her best to hide it until the children left with her mother.

"What's going on, Dad? Did something happen to Kurt?" She asked letting her emotions come spilling out in the form of tears.

"I didn't want to tell you while you were still in the hospital but-"

"Dad, what is it? Tell me!" Stephanie hollered before bringing her hands to her face to both wipe away the tears and to brace herself for what was coming.

"He was arrested earlier today. Apparently, he consumed some alcohol and he failed a breathalyzer test." Vince finally divulged to his daughter.

Steph's emotions quickly shifted from worry and sadness to anger and shock. She sat up straight and looked on at her father like he was playing a unfunny practical joke on her. But, by the look on Vince's face, she knew that he wasn't. He was being completely serious.

"He was arrested for drunk driving? He went out drinking while I was at home sick as a dog with four children to look after? This is unbelievable! So what now, I guess we have to bail him out of jail?"

"I called my attorney and he's looking into it. He did say that he's going to have to stay overnight in lockup. He's going to try and get him released first thing in the morning."

"My God, I can't believe he would be so irresponsible! And oh my God, the media, if it's already on the news locally here, that means it's all over the internet!"

"Don't worry about that, honey. It's all going to be okay. You just put it all out of your mind and concentrate on feeling better. We'll get Kurt out of jail tomorrow morning and we'll immediately start doing damage control. We've dealt with worse controversy. It will be okay." McMahon assured her before giving her a loving hug.

The sound of Vince's cell phone ringing caused him to let go of the embrace and check the phone to see who the incoming call was from. It was Laurinatis. Steph knew immediately it was work by the look on her father's face.

"Go ahead and go, I know you have a lot on your plate with SmackDown. I want to be alone for a while, anyway." Steph told her dad as she motion toward the door.

"All right, sweetheart, I'll be back in a few hours to bring you some dinner, no hospital food for Daddy's Billion Dollar princess."

Her father's comment caused Steph to let out a chuckle and she nodded to show her gratitude. When Steph was left alone, she let out a sigh and brought her hand to her abdomen. Her eyes, she closed tightly, causing tears to break away and fall from their forming pools in her eyes. Here she was again; carrying a second child from a husband who was missing due to selfish reasons. It really made her wonder if history was indeed repeating itself.

* * *

"Shit..Shit..Shit..Shit." Angle whispered under his breath over and over again like it was a mantra of some sort.

He had screwed up royally. Kurt knew that there was little to no chance he was going to make bail without first spending the night in the small cell he was being held in. This was definitely one of the lowest points in his life. He was being held behind bars in a cell that contained only a large piece of wood that was attached to the wall that he was sitting on, which would be his bed, and a metal toilet, with no lid, and a sink. That's all he knew right now. He hadn't been able to reach Stephanie when he called the house.

What if she had taken a turn for the worst? If she was incapacitated, what would happen to the children? Did Kyra know enough to call 911 for help? If he had been thinking right that morning, he would have contacted Linda and told her of the situation.

"God, please let my wife and kids be okay..." He prayed to himself in the dimly lit cell, his hands he firmly clenched together as a sign of prayer.

It was maddening. There was nothing for him to do but dwell on the events of the day that had led up to him being where he was. His mind was constantly formulating instances where his wife and family were finding out about his arrest. God, everyone probably knew about it by now. It was probably popular discussion on the internet. His reputation was surely going to be tarnished because of his recklessness. There wasn't anything he could do about it now. All he could do was wait and hope that his family was going to get him out of there.

Kurt wanted to leave so bad. He kept wishing he would hear the footsteps of an officer coming toward his cell to tell him that Stephanie was there to take him home. He fantasized her standing in the police station waiting for him; her teary brilliant blue eyes filled with both worry and love. Angle would take her into his arms and tell her how sorry he was about everything, and how much he loved her.

And then, Angle's eyes widened as he actually began to hear the sound of shoes walking the hallway that his holding cell was on. As the walking was getting closer, he stood up and went to the cell door, his hands grasping the bars while he strained to try and see who was approaching.

"Hey, did anyone get a hold of my wife?" He asked immediately when he caught sight of an officer walking toward his cell.

"You should chill out, Angle, no one's coming to get you. You're in here for the night." The uniformed man answered back with a smug smile on his face. It was like he was enjoying putting the wrestling celebrity in his place.

Kurt closed his eyes and let his forehead fall into the metal bars of the cell door. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

It was late in the afternoon when Paul made it back home. The first thing he did was call Linda. She had informed him that she was looking after the children at her place since Stephanie had been admitted to the hospital overnight for dehydration. Levesque didn't even bother stopping at home before driving to Greenwich hospital. He parked his Hummer in the visitor's parking lot, and entered the hospital through the main entrance.

The atrium lobby was somewhat busy with people, both patients, their families, and medical personal. Upon entering, Levesque's hazel eyes fell upon the information desk. He was sure that the woman at the desk could tell him the floor and room number of Stephanie's private hospital room. Patiently, he stood in line and waited his turn.

"Can I help you, sir?" The woman asked to signal that it was now his turn at the front desk.

"Hi, I'm here to visit an admitted patient and I need you to point me in the right direction. Her name is Stephanie McMahon, or Stephanie McMahon-Angle, whatever she's calling herself these days."

The lady smiled politely and began typing into the computer in front of her. After a few mouse clicks, she looked back up at Paul.

"Mrs. Angle has requested strict visitation that is limited only to family. May I ask your relationship to her?"

Paul paused for a moment. If he was to answer her truthfully, he doubted that he would be granted access to go up and see Steph. Ex-husband didn't really fall into the close family member category.

"I'm her husband, Kurt Angle." Paul heard himself say in a confident tone of voice.

He was banking on the assumption that the hospital receptionist didn't know of him nor Kurt Angle from the on screen roles they played on television. He was also counting on the fact that Angle was in jail, and had no way of showing up at the hospital.

"Okay, sir, I'll just need to see some identification, it's hospital policy for all who claim to be close family visitors...Sir, excuse me, sir?"

Paul's attention had left the polite receptionist and had immediately been fixed on his former father-in-law the moment he caught sight of him exiting an elevator, walking toward him.

"Mr. Angle, excuse me, Mr. Angle?" The lady continued, a little louder this time. Paul's eyes widened as Vince turned in his direction after hearing the last name "Angle" being spoken by the receptionist.

Before their eyes had a chance to meet, Paul turned his back on the main desk, and immediately began to walk away. He was hoping he had not made himself obvious to Vince. The last thing he needed was him on his ass. His plan was to slip inside the gift shop until McMahon passed by.

"What the hell do you think you are doing here?"

Paul knew immediately that the jig was up. The loud booming voice was unmistakably that of Vince McMahon. He had almost made it to the gift shop when the voice compelled him to turn around to come face to face with his former father-in-law as he approached with his usual pissed off look on his face.

"I'm here to see Steph." Levesque answered in an exhale. He knew that this conversation was going to be anything but a pleasant one.

"You're not going to see my daughter! You shouldn't even be here! You're supposed to be in the main event of tonight's tapings. I got a call from Laurinatis a few hours ago and he told me that you wrote yourself off the show. Just who the hell do you think you are?" Vince asked sticking his finger in Paul's face as he dressed him down.

"You know who I am, Vince. And you're damn right I wrote myself off of tonight's show. I was worried sick about Stephanie. I traveled all the way back here just to check on her and Aurora. You can't fault me for caring about them. I'm not the terrible husband and father that you want to make me out to be." Paul replied with sincerity. He then began to walk away, back toward the front entrance of the hospital.

"You're not her husband anymore! When are you going to get that through your head, Levesque?" McMahon called after him.

His words compelled Paul to whip back around with a smirk on his face that was reminiscent of his time as the top heel of the company during the McMahon-Helmsley regime at the turn of the millennium.

"And where is her husband, Vince? Where is your new wonderful son-in-law, Mr. 1996 Olympic Gold medalist?" Paul asked in a sarcastic tone of voice that caused McMahon to raise his chin in the air while his face turned a nice shade of red.

"Oh, that's right, your daughter's new husband is sitting in jail because of a DUI charge. That's really great for not just Stephanie and Aurora, but for the company too- great publicity, Vince, bravo." Paul continued as he then began clapping his hands together.

"You miserable son of a-"

"Gentleman, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. This is a hospital and you are upsetting its patrons. If you wish to continue your conversation, it will have to be off hospital grounds." A security guard warned both Vince and Paul, cutting McMahon off.

"It's okay officer, I've already said my piece, the conversation is over. I'm leaving." Levesque told the security guard with his hands up to show that he was in no way a threat to security.

"Damn it, I'll pay you to escort his ass out. He was here trying to harass my family. He's nothing more than a disgruntled employee, hell bent on making me and my family's life a living hell! And he's lucky that I don't fire his ass!" Vince screamed as Paul began to walk toward the sliding doors.

"Sir, if you don't calm down, it will be you who will be escorted out of this hospital. He's leaving peacefully, now let's leave it at that." The hospital guard told Mr. McMahon.

Paul felt a wave of disappointment over power him the moment he stepped outside of the hospital building. He had completely blown off his responsibilities as The Game, Triple H, and travelled back home to Connecticut with the hope of checking on his former wife. If he would have known earlier today that the closest he could get to Stephanie was the hospital lobby engaging in a heated altercation with her father, he wouldn't even have bothered.


	45. Chapter 45

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-Five

"Thank you so much for everything, Mom." voiced Stephanie, showing her mother her gratitude for all Linda had done for her in the past twenty-four hours.

Linda, with all four children in tow, had been at the hospital bright and early to pick Steph up when she was discharged. After getting everyone home safe and sound, Mrs. McMahon even stayed around for an hour or so. She wanted to make absolutely sure that Stephanie really was feeling better, and would be okay to be on her own with the kids.

Stephanie was resting comfortably on her living room sofa, while her mom loaded a tried and true Disney movie into the Blu-ray player to pacify three of the four children. The one left out, being baby Andrew shrieked with delight when his granny granted him free roam of the living room floor where all his baby toys were scattered.

"Oh, it's no trouble at all, sweetheart. I'm just so thankful that Paul called me yesterday morning. I don't even want to think about what could have happened if I didn't come over and get you to the hospital."

Steph was thankful too. Not just for the endless support of her mother, but also for her ex-husband, and his presence of mind to call Linda at some point after he left. It was selfless and caring deeds like that that made Stephanie see a glimmer of the man she had fallen in love with all those years ago. The prospect of that same man being there for their daughter truly warmed her heart.

"Yeah, Paul has really been surprising me lately. I really think that we are moving forward as a family and putting the past behind us. I just wish things were going as well with Kurt. I haven't been able to stop thinking about the arrest. I can't, for the life of me, figure out what would make him do something so stupid."

"Well, Kurt should be making bail today. I think it's important for you to wait and hear what he has to say about it. Maybe there is more to the story than we know right now." Linda suggested in an attempt of showing optimism.

"To be honest with you, Mom, I don't even want to hear his explanation. There is no reasonable excuse for what he did. A responsible husband and father would never drive drunk. I mean, what if the kids were in the Escalade with him?"

Stephanie noticed Kyra in her peripheral looking over at her. The oldest child was the only one who had taken her attention off of the movie, and was now focusing on the adults. Steph let out a sigh, and then bit her bottom lip.

"I think this is a topic that should be discussed between you and your husband in privacy when he comes home. I have to go now because I have back to back meetings at corporate. I'll have my blackberry on so don't hesitate to call me if you need anything." Mrs. McMahon told her daughter after she also saw Kurt's daughter eyeing them.

"Okay, Mom, thanks again."

It wasn't long after Linda left, that the Angles' home phone began to ring. Instinctively, Steph quickly reached for the phone that was on the end table right by where she sat on the sofa. Without even bothering to look at the caller id, her thumb pressed the talk button and she brought the phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Hey Steph, how are you feeling?"

Stephanie knew immediately who the male voice on the line belonged to. It was Paul. His voice sounded sweet and caring.

"Oh hi, I'm doing okay. I stayed in the hospital overnight because I was dehydrated from being sick. The IV fluids they gave me worked great, because I feel so much better this morning. It's really sweet that you called to check on me." Steph answered back, giving a smile even though she knew he wouldn't be able to see it.

"I was really worried about you when Linda told me that you were admitted to the hospital. I actually left the SmackDown tapings early and tried to visit you, but you weren't accepting visitors, and your dad was there, and you know how that turned out."

"Aw, you shouldn't have left early. Everything is fine, really. Mom was nice enough to take Aurora and the rest of the kids over night for me, so there was no problem. I'm so sorry you traveled back home early for nothing."

"It wasn't for nothing, I'm just glad you and Aurora are doing okay."

Kyra quickly got up from where she was sitting on the floor with her brother, and ran over to her step-mother while pointing toward the direction of the kitchen.

"Stephanie, the baby went in there by himself." She announced.

"Paul, I have to go, thanks for calling to check on everything, that was very considerate of you...bye."

Once she ended the call, she thanked Kyra for the heads up, and left the sofa to chase after her one year old son. Andrew was in the kitchen trying his best to open one of the lower kitchen cabinets that was being held shut by a child proof lock. He let out a frustrated whine when he saw his mother coming toward him.

"I think we need to put up the baby gates, little man. You need to stay in the living room with Mommy and your brother and sisters." Steph told him as she picked him up.

It was when she was holding him that Steph noticed that he needed a diaper change. She grabbed all the changing necessities from near the wet bar and then began changing Andy on the kitchen counter.

"When's my daddy coming back?" asked Kyra as she entered the kitchen.

"He should be coming home in an hour or so. Did you have a fun time with him at RAW on Monday?" Stephanie inquired, wanting to change the subject to something else before the child asked anything about the arrest.

"It was okay. Kody fell out of the ring and we had to be in the doctor room. And then a lady came and was acting all nice to Daddy. She stayed with us while Daddy worked." Kyra told her step-mother, giving her an account of the goings on at the RAW arena.

"Was the lady's name Candice Michelle?" Steph then questioned, after she took only a moment to process what Kurt's oldest child told her. She had to ask, even if she already thought she knew the answer.

"Yeah, she likes Daddy. She kept smiling and talking to him like this." The child said, giving her best impression of the flirtatious voice that the diva used when talking to her father.

Steph felt her anger begin to rise. Not only was Kurt still using Candice Michelle as a babysitter, when she had specifically asked him not to, but the flirtation between the two of them was so blatant that even the six year old picked up on it. Kurt really had nerve to be upset that Paul was helping take care of things at the house, when he was gladly accepting help from Candice.

"Do you think that Daddy likes her?" Stephanie then asked putting the finishing touches on the diaper change.

"I don't know, he was nice and smiled at her." She explained with a shrug. "I told her that Daddy is married to you and she said that she knows. She said too that she thinks Andy is cute."

"Well that was nice of her. Do you want a snack or something, sweetie?" Steph asked changing to topic yet again. She didn't want to give the child the impression that she was upset. It was all between her and Kurt, the kids had nothing to do with it.

"I want a pop tart. There weren't any at Linda and Vince's house." Kyra mentioned as she then took a seat at the table.

"Mmm, a pop tart does sound good. I think I want one too. Why don't you go and ask Aurora and Kody if they want one as well, while I put Andrew in his high chair."

It turned out that only Stephanie and Kyra wanted the Kellogg's strawberry flavored pop tarts. Not only did Steph enjoy having the child's company in the kitchen, she was also relieved that she had her appetite back. She could eat six of those rectangle pop tarts if she let herself, and why not? Her body had begun the process of creating a baby. She didn't need to diet, the gloves could be off.

"Is that Daddy?" Kyra immediately asked when the sound of the doorbell chiming echoed throughout the spacious home.

"Maybe, let's go see."

Stephanie got up from her chair and began to make her way down the hallway that lead to the front of the house. While she knew it was possible for her husband to be coming home at this time, she didn't think he would be coming to the front door instead of using the garage entrance.

"Mommy!" Kyra exclaimed with surprise the moment both she and Steph reached the front door and saw who was standing on the other side of it.

Kurt's first wife was standing on the Angles' front porch with her arms crossed over her chest, waiting for someone to answer the door. It was when Kyra peeked through the side window next to the door that the former Mrs. Angle's demeanor changed for the better.

"Hi my sweet peanut!" Karen gushed the moment Stephanie opened the door and Kyra ran right into her mother's arms.

"Hi Karen." Steph said graciously with a smile, trying to be polite.

"Oh, I missed my babies so much. Where's Kody?" Karen asked her daughter, not even bothering to acknowledge that the new Mrs. Angle had just spoken to her.

"He's watching a movie with Aurora. Did you come here to visit with Daddy too?" Kyra asked with her arms still wrapped around her mother's neck.

"No, I'm here to take you and your bother home to Tennessee. I'm not the only one who has been missing you guys: Jeff, Joslyn, Jaclyn, and Jerlyn miss you and want you to come home too." She explained, listing off Jeff Jarrett and his children.

"I can't leave now, Mommy, I'm eating a pop tart with Stephanie." Kyra told her mother as she was slowly set back onto her feet.

"You can go ahead and finish eating while I collect you and your brother's things."

"I'll go ahead and get their stuff together from upstairs. You can make yourself at home and visit with Kyra and Kody." Steph commented aloud, she was no longer smiling, but was looking right at Karen, to see if she would even turn to look at her while she spoke.

"Thank you..." Karen muttered not even giving Stephanie the slightest glance in her direction.

All Steph could do was roll her eyes in response to Karen's behavior. She couldn't believe that she was being so cold to her when she was now the step mother of Kyra and Kody. As two mothers, wasn't it best to get along as best they could for the sake of the children? Stephanie thought so, and she was determined to do so.

After ascending the staircase, Steph went to both children's respective rooms and loaded up each of their small suitcases with their folded clothes. It really didn't take long, because most of the clothing had not even left the luggage.

"You could have left them by the front door." Karen announced the moment she saw Stephanie enter the kitchen carrying both small suitcases in each hand.

"Well, I'm setting it here, if you want it by the door, feel free to move it there yourself." Steph quickly replied after she took a deep breath, setting the luggage down on the kitchen floor. Both Kody and Kyra were now in the kitchen with their mother, Steph could only assume that her three year old was still being entertained in the living room by the movie.

"Bye baby, I'll miss you." Kyra said sweetly as she reached with her hand and used it to pat her youngest sibling on top of his head, right on his soft spot. Andy's wet mouth formed a smile which compelled Kyra to then kiss his left chubby cheek.

Following his older sister's lead, Kody approached the high chair too. He smiled at his younger brother and gently took hold of the baby's right hand and quickly gave it a quick kiss.

"Well there's no way Kurt can deny that baby; he's got that Angle cranium." Karen commented with a forced chuckle.

"Oh yes, he definitely favors his daddy." Steph replied with a smile as she looked on at her youngest born.

"Isn't Daddy going to say goodbye to us before we go home?" Kyra asked questioning the absence of her father because she was being told it was time to leave Connecticut.

"He's busy, sweetie. I'm sure he'll call you later once we're home with Daddy Jeff."

Steph's eyes widened slightly after hearing Karen call her boyfriend "Daddy Jeff" to her daughter. Not once would Stephanie ever think about having Aurora call Kurt, "Daddy Kurt". She had corrected her child each and every time when Aurora had called him the 'D' word. How did Karen possibly think that was something to encourage?

"Stephanie, can I bring the Breyer horses from up in my room home with me?" Kyra asked shifting her head to the side as she awaited an answer that took a moment to come out of Steph.

"Of course, you and Kody can take home anything you want. Those are your toys in your rooms."

"One toy for each of you! I'm not dragging a bunch of toys back to Tennessee!" Karen yelled after the kids as they ran from the kitchen.

"Did Kurt know that you were coming for the kids today?" Stephanie inquired, breaking the silence that hung in the air immediately after Kyra and Kody left.

"How would he know, his selfish ass is sitting in jail. I came to get my children as soon as I found out what he did. I can't say I'm surprised. Kurt is just being Kurt. He'll never change. I'm so glad he isn't my problem anymore." Karen answered back in a voice that was full of venom and hatred.

"Well, I am surprised. I never thought he would go out drinking in the morning and then try and drive. I've never seen him be so irresponsible." Stephanie heard herself confide. She hadn't planned on sharing her thoughts with Karen, but it just spilled out.

"You know about his pain killer addiction before he left for TNA, right? If he's addicted to one thing, he'll be addicted to another. It's probably how he's trying to cope with the pain, since he can't pop pills anymore." Karen told Steph like it was a matter of fact.

"He's not a drunk, this is the first time anything like this has ever happened. I think you're jumping to conclusions a bit."

"I was married to the man for ten years. You're been married to him for how long? One year? You don't know the half of what I had to put up with being married to him. The addiction to pain killers, and then the lying and cheating. I'm sure you'll see for yourself soon enough; the honeymoon phase is probably dwindling for him."

Stephanie could feel a thick knot beginning to form in her stomach. For a moment she actually thought she was going to get sick again. Hearing Karen voicing her candid opinion of Kurt Angle as a husband was torture to her psyche. Each complaint she voiced about the past marriage, made Steph think about their current one. Was alcohol Kurt's new addiction? How truthful had he been during the year they had been married, and furthermore, had he been faithful to her?

Steph hadn't said a word in response to anything Karen had said about Kurt. She was far too overwhelmed with digesting everything that had been told to her. Stephanie was so taken aback that she didn't even notice that both of Kurt and Karen's children had returned to the kitchen with their selected toys. She was even still in a mental haze when both children gave her a hug goodbye.

"Goodbye, Stephanie, and good luck, I'm sure you are going to need it." Karen chuckled before leading her kids out the way she came, this time carrying their suitcases. In her voice was the hint of satisfaction. Karma, Karen thought, was indeed a bitch.

* * *

"Dad, I-"

"Shut up, don't say a word until we get into the limo." Vince said through gritted teeth as he stood in the police station waiting for his son-in-law to finish collecting his personal items that were now being released back to him.

Vince was most worried about not causing any further damage to his reputation. Local reporters were already waiting outside to get footage of Angle as he left lockup. There was no way McMahon was going to let him make a statement. While Kurt's lawyer was finally able to pull strings and help him get bail, the guy wasn't physically there representing him. It was up to Vince to make sure Angle didn't do anything else stupid.

"Mr. Angle, Mr. McMahon, do either of you have any comment on yesterday's arrest?"

The reporters immediately began to flood Kurt and Vince with variations of the same question. They were swarming around them like feverishly working bees at a great honey hive. McMahon's limo driver quickly opened the limo door as soon as Vince and Kurt approached, and closed it behind them.

"Now you want to tell me just what the hell you were thinking?" Vince asked as their limo began to pull away.

"My ribs were killing me yesterday and I came home from RAW to find Paul having breakfast in my house with my wife. I drove to a diner and had a few cups of spiked coffee. I needed something to take the edge off, you don't know what I was going through, Dad. I didn't think I was over the legal limit when I went to drive home. Brock texted me, I got distracted, and the next thing I knew, I had smashed into an old bastard in a Buick and a cop pulled up and decided to give me a breathalyzer." Kurt explained, giving a complete recall of the events that lead up to his arrest.

"If you were having problems then you should have called me, damn it! As a matter of fact, I tried to call you yesterday morning! Stephanie spent the night in the hospital. Linda and I had the kids over night."

"What, what happened, is she okay? Is she still really sick?" Angle questioned in succession, his eyes wide with fear from what his father-in-law might tell him about his wife.

"She's doing better. I'll let her tell you about it when you see her. What I need to talk to you about is what we're going to do to rectify this mess you created."

"Whatever you want me to do, I'll do it." Kurt promised without hesitation.

"Well, you see, the board of directors and the shareholders want you to face some kind of repercussion for your arrest. They want me to suspend you from the company." McMahon revealed in a low voice that was filled with disappointment.

"What, I can't wrestle? For how long?" Angle asked with a look of terror on his face. The idea of him not being able to be a professional wrestler for any length of time was like telling him he couldn't breathe.

"I don't know, give or take a few months. They want the writers to come up with something to write you off TV. You aren't fired or anything, we just need all this to blow over. You really did a number on our family and company's reputation. Linda hadn't told the rest of the family yet, but she's planning on running for a seat in the senate next year. We can't have any more negative press like what you pulled."

"It won't happen again...I just can't believe that I'm not going to be able to do my feud with Swagger. I promised the kid that it would happen. I'm letting everyone down. I just don't know what I'm going to do if I can't wrestle in WWE."

"You can spend more time at home with Stephanie and the kids. Stephanie needs your help as much as possible, being a mother and a businesswoman is no easy feat."

Angle nodded silently in agreement. Vince was right. This unfortunate situation would be a perfect opportunity to spend more time with his wife, stepdaughter, and baby son. Stephanie had said recently that she wanted to take on more responsibilities at the office and spend less time on the road. She wanted to give her children a more conventional family. Now, with his new found time on his hands, he could help her do that.

"As you can see, I had one of my assistants get your Escalade out of impound and park it in the driveway." Vince explained when the limo pulled up to the Angle home and was approaching the SUV that was parked in front of the garage.

"How much do I owe you for that?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it, we're family." Vince answered back without hesitation.

"Thank you for everything, Dad." Said Kurt in a voice full of sincerity as he emerged from the limousine followed by his father-in-law. McMahon nodded before reaching out and taking Angle into an embrace.

"You know I'm disappointed about what happened, but it's a forgivable mistake if you've learned from it. You keep your nose clean, and stay true and loving to my daughter, and we won't have any problems." Vince said as he patted Kurt on the back while they hugged.

"You want to come in and visit before you leave?" Angle offered as soon as they broke their hug.

"No, I need to get back to work. I'm sure you and Stephanie have a lot to talk about." Vince told him as he went to get back into his limo.

"You call me if you need anything. And next time you decide to throw one back, do it in the privacy of your own home." McMahon added before disappearing into the jet black limousine.

Kurt gave a weak smile and a nod as he then watched his father-in-law's limo back out of the lengthy driveway. He stood there watching, until the company car was gone from sight. He was home now and all that was left to do was go inside and reconcile with his wife. They really had a lot to dialogue about: their fight in the kitchen, his arrest, and her overnight stay in the hospital in the wake of his absence. Hopefully, she would be willing to hear him out about all of it.

A few key presses on the garage keypad gained him access to the door that adjoined the garage to the laundry room. The house was strangely quiet. The only sound Angle could pick up on was that of the dishwasher running through a normal cycle. Not only was Stephanie nowhere to be found, but there was absolutely no sign of any of the children. If Vince hadn't already mentioned that they were home, Kurt would have thought that he was alone in the house.

The living room, while it was littered with toys of all ages, was vacant. It was then that he heard the sound of a toilet flushing directly overhead on the second floor, that Kurt knew where to look for his wife. She was undoubtedly in the master bathroom. God, he would kill for a hot shower, that was going to be the first thing he did after having a heart to heart with Steph.

After climbing the stairs, Kurt walked down the hall and directly to the double doors of his and Stephanie's master bedroom. He stood at the white doors for a few seconds and took a shallow breathe, which caused his eyebrows to furrow from the pain it caused. And then, with a hand on each of the door handles, he slowly swung the doors open, revealing his wife lying on their king size bed.

"Babe, I'm home." Angle informed her in a subdued voice that was almost a whisper. From where he stood, he couldn't tell if she was asleep or not.

It was after his voice pierced the silence that Steph lifted her head off the pillow and looked at him. Her face was red and tear stained. She looked like she had been crying for a while. Angle wasn't sure why she was upset. Did something happen to her or one of the kids? Was she crying because of the arrest? Was she still sick?

"Steph, what's wrong? Where are the kids?"

"Karen came and picked up Kyra and Kody, and Aurora and Andrew are taking naps." Stephanie muttered through her obvious nasal congestion.

"She came here and just took my kids?" Angle asked as if he had misunderstood what his wife had told him because of the hoarseness of her voice.

Stephanie didn't reply. She simply plopped her head back down on her pillow and let out a few sniffles. It was obvious that she didn't care to elaborate on Karen's unplanned visit to their home.

"Are you still sick? Mom and Dad made it seem that you were doing much better." Kurt inquired, switching topics to one that he believed would actually yield a response from her.

"No..." She whispered.

Angle narrowed his eyes while folding his arms in front of him. The way she answered made it seem like she was going to elaborate on her condition further. He turned his head at a slight angle and awaited for her to continue.

"I'm pregnant." Steph finally added after several seconds of a delay.

Kurt's jaw dropped. He would have never thought that it was a pregnancy that had Stephanie so sick for the past few days. Their son had just turned a year old, and now they had yet another baby on the way?

"Are you serious? Wow, that's great...Isn't it?"

Angle didn't know how his wife wanted him to react. She didn't seem to show emotion either way. It was like she was indifferent about the news. Were they not suppose to be happy about this unplanned pregnancy?

"It is, I just wasn't expecting to be expecting again so soon. I also wasn't planning on being all alone yet again when finding out that I was going to have another baby. This is the second time this has happened to me." Steph explained, as the tears began to flow freely from her eyes.

Kurt sighed and then turned around to face the doorway. For a moment, Steph actually thought he was going to leave the room, but then she saw that he was simply closing the doors to give them more privacy to talk without fear of waking the children.

He then turned back around and this time ventured further into the room. He took a seat on the side of the bed right next to where Stephanie was laying.

"I would have been there for you, but-"

"But what? What excuse could you possibly have for storming out of the house like a three year old leaving me sick with four children, two of which were here to spend time with you since they never see you, while you went out drinking!" Stephanie hollered, completely cutting him off out of frustration. She had lifted her head off of her pillow and was now sitting straight up in bed.

"I left before I did or said something that I'd regret!" Angle shouted back, matching her intensity level as he stood back up before continuing to say his piece.

"I come home after busting my ass for your company to find you having breakfast with your ex-husband in my house and at my breakfast table! I would think you would know where I'm coming from when that same son of a bitch had his blonde slut at your breakfast table when you came home one morning! You remember that, Stephanie, I know I do!" He said with such force behind his words as he brought up his wife's single encounter with the woman that had had a hand in ruining her first marriage.

Steph's eyes widened fully. Her pouty mouth gapped open as her brain tried to play catch up so that it could process what he had just spewed at her.

"I can't fucking believe you!" She screamed before she too got off the bed and stood toe to toe with her husband before she went on.

"How dare you compare yesterday morning to that painful moment in my past! Paul was there only to help me!"

"If you needed help you should have called your mother!" Kurt shouted with full intensity at the same time his arm darted outward with his finger pointing out toward the window to further drive home his point.

"You knew I didn't want Paul around my son! How many times have I told you?" He roared causing all of the veins in his head to stick out. His temper was on the rise while his thoughts focused on his wife deliberately going against his wishes by having their infant son subjected to her ex.

"And I told you to stop letting that sneaky bitch, Candice Michelle, watch the kids! According to Kyra, you went ahead and let her anyway at RAW two days ago! Don't be a hypocrite and grow the fuck up!" Steph hollered right back without hesitation. She was damned if she was going to let him make her feel bad about calling on her ex-husband for help.

"So what? What's the big deal if she watched the kids? Are you so insecure that another woman's kindness automatically means that she wants to jump my bones?"

"I'm very secure in myself! Don't turn all of this on me! I'm not the irresponsible parent! You were the one who got drunk and decided to get behind the wheel! What if our children were in the Escalade with you? How would you be able to live with yourself if, God forbid, they got hurt because of you?" Steph sobbed, bringing the argument back to that of the children, the ones that mattered the most.

"That's why I didn't take any of them with me! I needed to get away for a while and have something to dull the pain of my fucking caved in ribs! I had a few spiked coffees, that's all! You act like I downed a bottle of Jack fucking Daniels!"

"Drinking is drinking and with what Karen told me about your past, you shouldn't be touching any addictive substances!"

There was a moment of silence; a break in the onslaught of allegations and insults being heaved back and forth. The sound of the crying children from in the other rooms could be heard by both Stephanie and Kurt. Angle was looking on at his wife, wide eyed, and almost like he was in a trance before he spoke.

"You're listening to Karen now? What did my ex-wife tell you?" He asked in a lower voice that was trembling with built up anger and resentment.

"She told me about the painkiller addiction and your cheating, how the two coincided with one another." Steph admitted aloud looking directly at him.

"You knew about my past before we even got together. What are you implying, Steph? That I'm not only now an alcoholic but I'm sleeping around on you too?"

Stephanie brought her hands to her face and wiped away her falling tears. She hated how it all sounded coming from him, but she would be lying if what she said it didn't cross her mind a few times in the last twenty-four hours. It was his past mistakes in his marriage to Karen coupled with his recent behavior that caused her to question his conduct.

"I don't know what I'm saying..." She whispered almost timidly as she looked down at the carpet floor.

"God damn it, Steph, I love you! I scarified everything to be with you! I left my kids to move to Connecticut, I reneged on my promise to Dixie Carter and the rest of the TNA locker room when I came back to WWE so that we could be together! I even stifled my ambition to do an MMA fight because _you_ didn't want me to! And after all that, you're going to listen to my bitter ex-wife? What the fuck, Stephanie?" He screamed on the top of his lungs, letting all his emotions, his heart and soul, pour out of him. Angle was laying it all out on the table now, holding nothing back.

Stephanie's blue eyes sparkled with her tears as she looked up and shook her head. She was trying her best to keep it together so she could reply to his revelation that he had just laid out for her.

"If you feel like you've been so put upon, maybe we should end the marriage then. Don't act like you did me a big favor by marrying me just because you found out I was carrying Andrew." Steph croaked with such sorrow that it made her heart physically ache.

Angle felt like someone had, without warning, punched him hard in the stomach. His icy blue eyes began to glaze over as tears began to form in them. Had Stephanie really just suggested the "D" word? Was she really ready to call it quits, just like that? After one year of marriage, a one year old, and a baby on the way? Did the life they created mean that little to her?

"Well...If you see it that way...then maybe I should leave..." He managed to mutter while he attempted to fight back his tears.

The awkward silence between the two of them felt like an eternity. A backdrop to all of it was the constant cries of both Aurora and Andrew who had been woken up from their naps because of the fighting. And then, Steph opened her mouth and spoke:

"I think you should..."


	46. Chapter 46

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-Six

Stephanie's consent of her husband's imminent departure was the abrupt end of their argument. Angle immediately began a lethargic process of getting clean clothing together from his dresser drawers and walk-in closet. It was Steph who emerged from the master bedroom to answer her children's cries. Aurora was already standing in the hallway. Her little angel face was tear stained, both sets of fingers were at her mouth like she was biting her nails out of nervousness. She looked terrified, like a fawn trembling in the looming presence of a hunter.

It was the heartbreaking sight of her little girl standing in the hallway shaking that caused Steph to put aside her own personal feelings about the fight, and focus completely on her children.

"Oh, sweetheart, everything is okay, come here." Stephanie assured her oldest child in a loving voice.

In one fluid motion, she scooped her crying daughter up into her arms for a heartfelt hug. Steph hated that the sound of her and Kurt screaming had spilled into the children's rooms. Aurora and Andrew were little innocents that didn't deserve to have hateful screaming pierce through their slumber.

"I hear-ed loud mad words!" The three year old sobbed while she held on her mother tightly.

"Mommy and Kurt were just upset. It's over now, no more fighting. Why don't you go lay back down and finish your nap? Mommy needs to check on Andrew." Steph whispered into her daughter's ear. Her words caused Aurora to lift her head from her mother's chest.

"I'm not sleepy, I wanna stay wif you." Aurora whined as she began to rub both her eyes with her hands. She could hear the baby still crying from the nursery, but she didn't care. She wanted Mommy to herself.

"Okay, okay, you can check on the baby with me." Steph replied back as she carried her daughter with her into the nursery.

Andrew Vincent was standing in his crib when his mother entered the room. He stopped crying the moment he saw her, and began to whine, shifting back and forth between each foot as he watched Steph come further into the room toward him. As soon as she approached the crib, he reached out for her.

"Be a big girl now, sweetie. I have to take care of the baby." Stephanie told her daughter as she set her down back on her feet.

Aurora was crestfallen by her mother's actions. Why did her mommy need to stop giving her attention to give it all to that crying baby? The baby didn't need all of those hugs and kisses, she did.

"No, Mommy! I want you to hold me! No!" Aurora screamed out in a spoiled whine while she watched her mother shower the baby with affection the moment she picked him up. The three year old began to stomp her feet into the carpet floor as hard as she could.

"Aurora, that's enough! You need to act like the big girl that you are and let me take care of the baby! He needs his diaper changed!" Stephanie told her child in a raised voice so that she could be heard over Aurora's tantrum.

"No, I need you! Mommy, I want you! Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" Aurora Rose continued as she then threw herself back onto the carpet floor and began to kick out while yelling after her mother took the baby to the changing table.

Stephanie let out an exasperated sigh and continued on changing her son's diaper. The child's screeching and carrying on was like nails on a chalkboard. She knew that it would be wrong to give attention to her daughter when she was exhibiting such bad behavior. It would be best to ignore it, and the three year old would stop. After all, it was all being done for attention.

"What's going on in here?" Kurt asked raising his voice over Aurora's so that he could be heard as he entered the nursery.

Stephanie said nothing. She acted like she hadn't even heard him. He was getting the same treatment as Aurora's tantrum was. It wasn't until he approached the changing table that she even looked in his direction.

"How's my little buddy doing? Daddy missed his boy." Angle told his youngest child the moment his wife had finished putting his clothing back on him.

The moment that Aurora saw that Andrew's daddy was there to give him attention, she stopped yelling and quickly ran to hug her mommy's legs. This was her chance to regain her mom's full attention. Instinctively, Steph placed her hand on her daughter's head and gently stroked her hair.

"Are you finished packing?" Steph inquired then folding her arms while she watched her husband pick up Andrew. She was a little annoyed that he was wanting to play with their son instead of getting his stuff together to leave the house.

"Just about, I wanted to take a time out to visit with the kids before I left. I'm going to miss them."

"You weaving? Where you going?" Aurora asked aloud after hearing that her stepfather, who had just come home, was leaving yet again.

Hearing the concerned voice of her little girl made Stephanie shoot Kurt a facial expression that would most certainly be classified as an "eat shit and die" look. He had no right to allude to the fact that he was leaving their home for an extended amount of time. Aurora Rose had been through enough this morning with overhearing the fighting, she didn't need to be clued in on the aftermath too.

"Kurt has to go away for a little while on business." Steph told her child before Angle could even come up with the appropriate answer for a three year old in his head.

"Hey Aurora, why don't we go watch some cartoons downstairs? That sound good?" He then asked reaching his free hand out toward his wife's child. This was his best attempt at changing the subject.

"Okay!" The three year old exclaimed before she let go of her mother's legs and did a little skip over to her stepdad to take his hand.

Before even attempting to leave the nursery, Angle looked at his wife's face, waiting for any sign of disapproval from her. He figured she would be fine with him taking both children off her hands, but after what had been said between them in their master bedroom, he wasn't certain.

"I'll be downstairs after I get shower." Steph stated as she began to walk toward the door.

A hot shower: that's all Angle had wanted upon arriving home. Spending the night in the county jail was one of the worst nights of his life. If anyone deserved a shower, it was him. But he wasn't going to make it an issue. He had already spoke his mind earlier during the heated fight, and now his wife wanted him to leave their home. Kurt didn't want to make things any worse. She could have the shower, she was the one after all, that was pregnant with their child.

While Stephanie was initially disappointed that her husband wasn't leaving the house right way, she quickly realized that having him leave abruptly wouldn't be what was best for the two small children. Besides, with him watching Aurora and Andrew, it gave Stephanie some time to herself to decompress. As a busy mother of two, she wouldn't dare turn way some alone time, no matter how brief it would be.

Once everyone was in the upstairs hallway, Steph watched Kurt scoop up her daughter with his free arm and then descend the stairs with both children. When they had reached the bottom, Stephanie left the hallway for the master bedroom.

Steph let out a long sigh as her eyes fell upon the open duffle bag that was sitting on the end of the bed. She could see her husband's idea of folding from the jumbled clothing inside of the bag. Stephanie felt guilty that it had come to this, but she knew it had to. In no way could she justify his behavior in her mind. She had said things that really had to be said, as did he. Kurt had to know that she was not going to tolerate drinking and driving. She cared too much about him and her children to make nice about the situation.

It was when Steph walked over to her side of the bed that she caught sight of something on her bedside table that caused her eyes to narrow. There on the nightstand sat Kurt's wedding band. He had to have put it there while packing. How else did it move from his bedside table, where he had left it before leaving for RAW, to her bedside? And why would he do that? Was this his unspoken way of telling her that he was serious about ending their marriage? Would be really be that cold?

"Insensitive asshole..." She muttered under her breath while at the same time she went into the top drawer of the table and removed her wedding ring from the jewelry tray.

She then picked up his wedding band and quickly whipped back around, moving back to his duffle bag. Carelessly, Steph let both rings fall on top of the open bag so that they were sitting upon his clothing. She stood there for a moment staring at the two rings that symbolized her marriage before she relinquished herself to a hot shower in an attempt to wash it all away.

* * *

"Kurt..." Steph whispered as she stood in front of her sofa where her husband and two children had fallen asleep. She was doing her best to wake him up and not her two kids who were hopefully going to be able to finish their nap.

Her whisper didn't even cause a stir in Angle's slumber. His head was tilted back, his mouth open slightly. Like a little miniature version of his father, baby Andrew was asleep on his lap in the exact same position. Angle's free arm was loosely around Aurora who was napping with her head resting on his left pectoral muscle. If he and Steph weren't at odds, it would be a sight that would have been too precious to disturb. Unfortunately for Angle, Stephanie wasn't going to let his apparent devotion to the children make her forget what had transpired between them.

"Kurt!" She said again, this time louder and with force that was accompanied by a hard slap on the knee.

The slap to the knee was enough to cause him to jolt out of his slumber. He blinked his eyes a few times before looking up at his wife who was standing there looking down at him.

"What time is it?" He asked in a mutter after taking notice of the sleeping kids and the fact that he himself had dozed off.

"It's time for you to finish packing and leave. Hand me the baby and don't wake up Aurora when you get up." Steph demanded in a whisper as she held her arms out for her sleeping one year old.

Angle looked like he wanted to say something in reply but instead he did what Stephanie wanted. He was able to transfer Andrew to his mother's arms without waking him, and once she had the baby, Steph left to put him in his crib.

It took Kurt a minute or two of slow awkward positioning in order for him to get up off the couch and leave his three year old step daughter still sleeping there. Once he was off the couch, he returned upstairs to the master bedroom to collect his things. He had a handful of things left to grab since he already had his toiletries and a good amount of clothing in his luggage that was still in his SUV from his travel to RAW earlier in the week. Grabbing a handful of matched socks from a dresser drawer, he made his way over to his duffle bag.

"What the hell?" Angle said aloud dropping his socks onto the bedspread when he caught sight of the two rings sitting on top on the bag of clothing.

Angle scooped up both wedding rings and then examined them in the palm of his hand. Stephanie had obviously found his wedding band that he, in anger, had picked up from his nightstand and threw onto her bedside table. Did she even know that he had inadvertently forgotten his wedding band before he left for RAW? Did she think he had taken it off his hand as a sign of ending the marriage? What took Angle aback was the fact that her response to it was for her to take her wedding ring, and his ring, and carelessly dumped them on to his duffle bag, without even mentioning it at all. Was she letting her actions speak for themselves? Did she want to end their marriage regardless of the fact that they were having another child together?

Kurt bit his lip. He gazed down on the large sparkling diamond ring that he had had custom made for Steph. The exquisite engagement ring was uniquely intertwined with the wedding ring. It was the most expensive piece of jewelry he had ever purchased, but seeing it on her hand was worth it; she had been worth it.

Angle closed his hand over the rings and closed his eyes tightly, causing a single tear to escape from his eye and stream down his face. He should have never tossed his wedding band onto her side table, no matter how frustrated he was with her. Her retaliation to his insensitive act tore at his heart. He never wanted to see her wedding ring anywhere else but on her finger.

Should he make an attempt to give it back to her? That's what his heart wanted but it was his brain that kept him from doing so. She had already stated multiple times that she wanted him to leave their home, and the possibility of her throwing the ring back at him would be like salt in the wound. He didn't think he could take that level of rejection, not now after all he had been through in the past twenty-four hours.

He opened his eyes and then took a short breath in, pushing back the congestion in his nose and the tears that wanted to fall down his face. Kurt slid his wedding band back on his left hand before he tucked his wife's diamond ring in a small zipper compartment inside of his duffle bag for safe keeping. He then put the pairs of socks inside the bag before forcefully zipping it shut.

Leaving the master bedroom with the duffle bag in hand, Angle stopped at the open door of the nursery where he peered into the room and saw his wife standing next to the crib with her back to him. She had obviously already laid their sleeping baby down, but she was still lingering there.

"I'm leaving now." He said in a hoarse whisper, not bothering to cross through the open doorway.

While he was stating the obvious, he was also announcing his departure with the hope of receiving a last minute pardon before being banished from their home. Angle had time to think things over in the last several moments, maybe she did too. There was an awkward silence for a moment that Kurt saw was a glimmer of hope that a reconciliation could be on the horizon.

"Goodbye."

The single word pierced the silence even though it was spoken in only a quivering whimper. Angle didn't have to see her face; he could tell from the sound of her voice that she was crying. The dissonance between them was hurting her as well. Gently, he lowered his bag to the floor.

"Steph?" Kurt croaked, taking the initiative to begin to close the distance between them as he crept into the nursery to approach his wife quietly without waking his sleeping son.

Despite hearing her name, Stephanie didn't move from her position at the railing of the crib. The only part of her that moved at all was her finger tips as they traced circles over and over again on the light pickled pine wooden railing.

When he approached her, Angle gently placed his left hand on the small of her back, while his right hand he placed on her lower abdomen where he knew the new tiny little life that they had created was growing even at that very moment. His touch caused Steph to let out a soft whimper, as she was doing her best to stifle herself from crying aloud. Slowly, Angle leaned in, bringing his mouth closer and closer to her right ear until it was only an inch or so away.

"If you don't want me to leave, just say so and I won't." He whispered to her in a hushed tone of voice.

His proposal caused Steph to bring her hands up to her face. She wiped away her tears and then took a few seconds to massage her forehead in a futile attempt to do away with the dull ache that had settled into her frontal lobe.

Kurt stood there, waiting patiently, but with some level of confidence that she was about to say that she didn't want him to leave her and the children. His trust grew as she removed her hands from her face and placed both of them over his large hand that was still cupping her abdomen. He was about to smile until he felt her pulling his hand off of her body. Angle looked on at her, puzzled by her action as she finally turned to face him for the first time.

"I want you to leave. We need some time apart. I need space." She finally replied looking into his eyes with the utmost sincerity as she said aloud what she knew was a truthful answer but one that would hurt him.

Kurt's mouth dropped open. He was bewildered by his wife's reply. His hands fell to his sides as his watery blue eyes blinked a few times causing tears to flood out. There was nothing more to say. She had said it all in three sentences. Stephanie wanted to separate.

* * *

Slowly, Paul's red Hummer drove up the lengthy driveway to the Angle home. The red brake lights illuminated as the SUV pulled to a stop near the garage doors. Levesque breathed in sharply before holding in the air while at the same time he put it in park and killed the engine. He then sat back in his driver seat for a moment and slowly let out his exhale.

Was he making a mistake showing up at his ex-wife's house uninvited? News reports had made it clear that Angle had been released earlier in the day. He was probably in that house right now with Steph. Paul's arrival would only cause more drama if Kurt knew he was there.

Paul brought his hand to his beard scratching it while his mind continued to contemplate his rash decision to come over there. If Angle knew; that was the key. Levesque glanced over at his Hummer's digital clock. It was eight o'clock at night. For a guy who had a sleepless night in county lockup the night before, he was willing to bet that Kurt was already in bed.

That is if he was even there. It was quite possible that he and his butt buddy, Vince, were meeting with a lawyer so they could cover their asses from the media shit storm that was raining down on the company.

Fuck it, he was going for it. Paul was sitting there in Stephanie's driveway. He was the closest he had gotten to see her in days. Besides, it wasn't just Steph who was in that house, his little girl was too. He wasn't going to give up now, not when he was this close. If need be, he would tell Kurt Angle to go fuck himself, right to his face. Levesque's face formed a smile because of his last thought. He grabbed hold of the paper bag that was sitting on his passenger seat and then exited his Hummer.

He walked the pathway to her front door with confidence and had no hesitation before ringing the doorbell once he reached the front door. While waiting for a response, Paul shifted his weight to one foot, and tried to get a look inside the home that looked dark from the small side window. And then, with a flip of a switch somewhere inside, the foyer was lit up. Levesque fell back to his other foot, going back to his neutral position as he knew the door was going to be opening. He took a deep breath and sighed, he was ready for whom ever was going to answer it.

The sigh turned into one of relief when it was Stephanie who was standing there when the door slowly opened. She looked somewhat disheveled: her hair was unusually messy, her eyes were red like she had been crying for a while. Instinctively, Paul's face formed a smile at the sight of his former wife. She always looked beautiful to him, even when she looked a far cry from her usual well kept appearance.

"Hey." Paul said through his smile before Steph even had a chance to have the first word.

"Hi, um, wh-what are you doing here?" She asked while her right hand pushed a dangling lock of hair behind her ear. She then folded her arms over her white terry cloth robe.

"Oh, well, I knew you probably would still be under the weather and could use something warm in your stomach, so I brought you a quart of egg drop soup. It's from that Chinese restaurant we used to always order takeout from." Levesque explained holding up the brown paper bag.

Steph's eyes blinked a few times and then looked away for a second or two before focusing back on him. Her initial reaction made Paul feel uneasy. Was what he thought to be a kind and thoughtful gesture on his part not seen to be so to Stephanie?

"Wow, umm, thank you, that was really nice of you to bring that by. I haven't had any since the last time we ordered it when we were together." She divulged with a weak smile to show her gratitude.

Levesque felt a rush of excitement and encouragement as he heard Steph bring up the fact that the last time she had had any of that soup was when they were still married. And she had been smiling when she said it, that had to count for something too.

"Are you by yourself with the kids? Do you need a hand? We could share the soup and if you need to talk about anything, I-"

"Thanks but um, I'm sorry, Paul, but I'm really not in the mood to eat right now, or to have any house guests. I'm just a mess right now, but thank you for coming over to check on things here." Steph said completely cutting him off midsentence before he could finish his dinner proposal.

"Oh, yeah, well, it's no problem." He replied with a smile as he handed over the warm bag. "I had them put some fortune cookies in there for Aurora. Is she still up? Can I see her?"

"No, sorry, she's already in bed. I was actually heading to bed myself. I'll put this in the refrigerator, I'm sure it will make a nice meal tomorrow, thanks again." Stephanie told him after accepting the bag.

Paul felt a wave of disapointment overcome him. He gave her a small smile and nodded to show that he was happy to help out. He couldn't help but feel let down. Not only was he not going to share the soup with Steph, but he wasn't even going to be invited in to see his daughter. Angle was probably upstairs already waiting for her to come to bed.

"You know, I'm free the next few days. Would you mind if I came over and visited with Aurora?" Paul asked the moment he sensed that Steph was about to say goodnight to him and close the door.

"Well, umm..." Steph began but paused briefly as she bit her bottom lip and looked away for a moment, "Yeah, sure, I guess it would be fine if you came over to see her. Just please call first to let me know when you want to come over."

"Oh yeah, I will, no problem. Have a goodnight, okay? I hope you feel better."

"Thanks, have a good night. Bye."

Paul held up his hand and gave a wave as he watched his ex-wife close the front door, leaving him alone again on the front porch. He stood there for a few more moments, analyzing the conversation between him and Steph in his mind. It wasn't until he noticed the light leave the foyer signaling her departure.


	47. Chapter 47

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-Seven

"You should be at home with your wife and son, not sitting here talking to me." Vince stated pointing his finger in the direction of his son-in-law. He and Angle were in his home gym having a father-son-in-law chat while McMahon worked out.

Vince had called Kurt earlier in the day while Angle was en route to a hotel. Of course, Kurt confided in his father-in-law about the fight he and Stephanie had had. McMahon insisted that Angle come over to the house and wait for him to get home from work.

"Steph doesn't want me there. She says she needs space. I think she might want to separate." Kurt divulged looking at the gym floor with shame.

"That's bullshit! Why, because of the arrest? She's your wife, she should be there to support you! We're a family, damn it! You guys are having another baby, for Christ sakes!" Vince hollered, getting himself all worked up letting the weights slam back into place.

"My ex-wife, Karen, came over to pick up my kids while I was gone. She filled Steph's head with all this ugly shit from what happened in our marriage. She's got Stephanie thinking that not only am I an addict but that I'm a cheater too. I just can't believe Steph would even entertain a word that Karen says."

"That's not like my daughter to jump to conclusions from biased sources. Did you give her any reason for her to think that you were unfaithful?" McMahon asked cocking his head slightly sitting forward on the bench of his machine.

"Hell no, she's making a big deal out of the fact that Candice Michelle is all flirtatious with me and I let her watch Andrew on more than one occasion when she wasn't there to do so. But it's okay for Steph to let her ex-husband, Paul, watch our son after I specifically asked her not to. Do I accuse her of screwing him? Even after I found him at my house having breakfast with my wife and baby the morning I got home from RAW!"

"What, he was there? Did she let him stay over? When you weren't there? What the hell is she thinking?" Vince asked completely puzzled by his daughter's actions.

"According to her, she's trying to work on Aurora and her father's relationship. Steph wants to be friendly with him, for their daughter. I guess I can't fault her for that, but for her to accuse me of being unfaithful..."

"I'm sure that she's paranoid about cheating thanks to her marriage to Levesque. You remember what that bastard put my daughter through. You know damn well he's going to try and weasel his way in with you gone. That's why you should go home right now and make things right between the two of you!" Vince commanded getting to his feet from his work out bench.

McMahon made it sound so easy. If only it were. What Kurt had omitted from his account of their fight was him throwing his wedding band on her bedside table out of anger and frustration. He felt ashamed to confess to Vince that Stephanie's wedding ring was in his duffle bag.

"I can't...She won't take me back tonight, if ever. I did something that I wish I hadn't. I was angry and hurt so I threw my wedding band on her night stand. She saw it while I was spending time with the kids, and her retaliation was to give me back her wedding ring...It's in my duffle bag. She wants time away from me, time without being my wife." Kurt heard himself slowly spill his guts as tears began to flow. His watery eyes were fixated on his wedding band on his hand.

Vince swallowed hard and slowly made his way over to his son-in-law who was dissolving into tears right before his eyes. He knew that what Angle did was not only stupid but very hurtful. McMahon's gut reaction after seeing Kurt break down in tears was to tell him to suck it up and be a man, but the fact that he was obviously so upset and regretful spoke volumes. Because of how hard Kurt was taking this, McMahon knew there was still hope for his daughter's marriage. Despite his flaws, she had a loyal husband that wanted it to work out. That was a hell of a lot more than she had the first time, Vince thought.

"It's going to be okay, son. Just give her a day or so to cool down. She loves you and she's having your baby. I bet Aurora is so excited about having a new brother or sister, huh?" Vince asked in his best optimistic voice while patting Kurt on the back.

"I don't think Steph is going to tell Aurora or anyone else just yet. Since she's miscarried before, I think she wants to get through the first few months. God, I want to be there. I missed most of her pregnancy with Andrew. I want to be there for her this time." Angle confessed bringing his hands to his face as he continued to cry.

"You will be, don't worry. I know my daughter. She loves you. You're a good husband and father. You can stay here with me and Linda as long as you need until this blows over. You should try and get some sleep. You look like shit." Vince told his son-in-law, taking him into a hug for several seconds.

"Thanks, Dad..."

Angle felt a bit of relief knowing that Vince was standing by him and wanting things to work out between him and Steph. Getting assurance from Stephanie's father that this was all just a temporary marital spat allowed him to somewhat breathe a sigh of relief. Maybe things weren't as bad as he thought. Tomorrow was a new day. If he wasn't ready to give up on their family, surely Stephanie wasn't either.

* * *

"My Mickey Mousey pannycakes ready, Mommy?" Aurora questioned from where she sat at the breakfast table in her boaster seat.

"Almost, sweetheart. What would you like to drink?" Steph asked back as she skillfully flipped over the Mickey Mouse shaped pancake with her spatula.

"Chocky milky, pweeze!" The three year old exclaimed without even a moment's thought.

Morning had come, and with it came a brand new day. Stephanie couldn't help but smile. Despite all she had endured the past few days, she was thankful to be feeling well enough to be taking care of her two children, following their normal morning routine. If there was one thing that she loved more than her professional job, it was being a mother.

"I wanna put the see-yup on." Aurora announced the moment her mom sat her plate and drink down in front of her. Her favorite thing about eating pancakes was always putting the sticky sweet syrup on them.

"I know, that's why I put the bottle right here on the table, here you go." Steph said with a chuckle, handing it to her daughter.

"Mama-mama-ma!" Andrew called out from his highchair, holding a cheerio up in his hand in Steph's direction.

"Is that a cheerio for me? Oh, yum, yum, yum!" Stephanie exclaimed making her way over to her son. Baby Andy laughed as his mother bent down and allowed him to feed her the cheerio.

"Muah, I love you, my sweet baby boy." Steph gushed after giving her son a kiss on his chubby cheek.

"What about me?" Aurora Rose whined sticking out her bottom lip at the sight of her mother showing the baby affection.

"I love you too, sweetheart, muah!"

Stephanie then gave an identical kiss to her daughter before she went into the kitchen to start cooking her own stack of pancakes. The sound of the home phone ringing diverted her attention.

"Aurora, don't put too much syrup on those pancakes." Steph warned her daughter as she went to answer the phone.

"Hello?" She said into the receiver, immediately after bringing the cordless phone to her ear.

"Hi Steph, good morning, are you feeling any better today?"

Stephanie smiled hearing her mother's voice on the other end of the phone. With the hectic schedule that Linda had been keeping the past few weeks, it was nice of her to call to check in on her.

"Yeah, I'm feeling a lot better, the nausea is gone, thank God. I hope it stays that way. How are things at the office? I feel so out of the loop from being sick." Steph asked pouring the pancake batter into the heated pan as she balanced the phone between her shoulder and the side of her head.

"It's been pretty hectic, as always. How are things with Kurt? Have you guys talked about the whole arrest situation and the pregnancy?" Mrs. McMahon inquired completely changing the subject from business to personal in a blink of an eye.

"To be completely honest with you, Mom, I really don't want to talk about it. I'm enjoying the morning with my kids and I'm feeling good. I'm sorry, but I just can't go there right now."

There was a small pause on the line before Linda replied to her daughter's refusal to talk about the most intimate and personal topics.

"Okay, honey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you or ruin your morning. I just want you to know that your father and I are always here for you and Kurt. If you need anything, don't hesitate to come to us."

"Thanks, Mom, it means a lot knowing that I have your support. Hey, I'm getting a call on my cell phone, do you mind if I let you go?" Stephanie asked after she took notice of her cell phone vibrating on the nearby counter top where it was charging.

"Oh, not at all. I'm sure I'll see you when you come over for your father's birthday this week, love you."

"Love you too, give Dad my love, and yes, I wouldn't miss his birthday. Bye."

Steph quickly ended the call and then went over to her cell phone. "Paul calling" was displayed on her cell phone screen. She picked it up, hit the green call button and brought it to her ear.

"Hi Paul."

"Hey Steph, how are you and our little princess doing this morning?"

"We're doing well, just sitting down for breakfast." Steph reported while returning back to her stove top to flip her cooking pancake.

"Listen, there's an aquarium in Norwalk. I was thinking I could swing by in an hour or so, pick up you and the kids, and we could spend the day there." Paul suggested.

Stephanie's eyes narrowed after hearing her ex-husband offer to drive her and the children up to the aquarium. While it was a nice thoughtful activity that both of her children would surely enjoy, it would be a little strange for her to be riding there with her former husband. God, how would that look? A day after she kicked Kurt out of the house, she and her one year old son were riding around town in her ex-husband's Hummer.

"That sounds very nice, but text me the address and we will meet you there. It will have to be later in the morning because I have some things to do around the house." Stephanie replied, accepting his offer with her own conditions.

"Will do, does eleven o'clock sound like a good time to shoot for?"

"Sounds perfect, just send me the address and we will see you there."

"Okay, I'll send it to you, but it's really easy to get to. It's right off of exit 14 northbound on 95. Aurora is going to love it. I can't wait to see her today...and you."

Steph sucked in air and held it for a second or two. She felt a bit uncomfortable by his comment being directed toward her as well. She didn't know what the appropriate response was, so she chose to ignore it entirely.

"Well, we'll see you soon. Bye."

"Later tater."

"Who that, Mommy?" Aurora asked the moment she saw her mother end the phone call.

"That was your daddy. He invited all of us to meet him at the aquarium. Wasn't that nice of him?"

"What's an awarium?" The three year old then questioned before shoving a piece of pancake in her mouth.

"It's a place where they keep lots of different fish, sharks, and all the other creatures of the sea." Steph explained going back to cooking on the stove.

"Sharks are there? Will we get eated? I don't wanna be wif the sharks, Mommy." Aurora told her mother while shaking her head to show her insistence.

"Don't worry, sweetheart, you can't be eaten by sharks. All of them are behind glass in a big tank. We are just going to look at them. It will be lots of fun, you'll see."

Levesque had made good on his word by texting Stephanie the address which she was easily able to plug into the built-in GPS in her Porsche Cayenee. It was only a twenty minute drive up I-95 to get to the Maritime Aquarium. Just like Paul had told her, it was very easy to get to. Luckily for her, little Andrew fell asleep as soon as they got on the interstate, and his older sister was content with playing with her Leapfrog Leapster handheld toy she had gotten last month for her birthday.

"You have reached your destination." The female voice of the GPS stated the moment Stephanie pulled into the large parking lot of the aquarium.

"I see Daddy, Aurora." Stephanie announced to her daughter as she drove the Porsche in the direction of what she knew to be her ex-husband's red Hummer. Sure enough, as soon as she pulled into the open space right next to the large SUV, Paul walked up to them.

"Hey, you made it." He said stating the obvious as he opened Stephanie's car door for her like a true gentleman.

"Yes we did, and we're very excited. The baby was so excited he fell asleep. I'm glad I brought his stroller." Steph replied with a smile as she stepped out of her automobile where her ex was standing.

"Let me see my baby girl, where is my princess?" Levesque commented aloud as he traveled around to the other side of the luxury cross over where Aurora was still buckled into her boaster seat.

He gave his daughter a hug before unbuckling her from her seat and lifting her up out of the Porsche. Stephanie was on the other side carefully lifting her younger child from his car seat without disturbing his nap.

"Do you need me to grab his stroller?" Paul offered after sticking his daughter up on his shoulders.

"Yeah thanks, that would be a big help. I don't know what I was thinking when I got him out of his seat before getting the stroller set up. It's in the back." She replied letting her son's floppy head rest against her chest as she carried him to the back of her vehicle.

Levesque removed the folded up stroller from the back of the automobile and a quick pull with one of his muscular arms, he was able to get it to snap up right and in place so that his former wife could place her sleeping baby inside of it.

"Mommy, I big now!" Aurora exclaimed holding her arms outstretched from her perch onto of her father's shoulders. She was getting her mommy's attention as soon as Steph put the baby down.

"Wow, you are really tall now! You've got the best view to see all the sea animals." Stephanie said back with a smile before going back to the front of her car to grab her purse and the diaper bag from the passenger seat.

"Ready to go in, Mommy?" Paul asked watching Steph place the two bags in the basket below the stroller.

"Yup, lead the way, Daddy."

Stephanie didn't mind using the titles "Mommy" and "Daddy" with Paul. It was all done for their little girl. She wanted to make today nice for her three year old since the little girl had no memories of spending time with both her parents together as a family.

Levesque began to walk on but did so casually so that Stephanie would be walking right next to him while pushing the stroller.

"The fishies in there, Daddy?" Aurora asked pointing to the large brick building that was unique because of its architecture. She was already getting excited and she wasn't even inside yet.

"They sure are, honey."

As soon as they crossed the threshold into the Maritime Aquarium, Steph started to go for her purse to pay for her and her children's admission.

"Don't worry about it, I already ordered the three tickets online. I took care of it." Paul told Steph, putting his hand on the small of her back as he spoke.

"You really shouldn't have done that. I can pay you back." She immediately replied snapping back to her neutral position upright.

"No, don't be silly. It was only twenty-six bucks for you and me, and ten for Aurora. The little bambino there is getting in for free, which is good because he might be sleeping through the whole thing." Paul commented with a chuckle as he pointed down at the sleeping one year old.

His comment caused Stephanie to laugh before she gently brought her hand to his muscular arm. Paul involuntarily flexed his muscles feeling her touch on his skin. God he missed being with her; being a family.

"Thank you." She breathed with a voice that was full of sincerity.

"Anytime." He answered back with a smile as he handed the guy behind the will call desk his driver's license so that he could retrieve the tickets.

"The Levesque family?" The guy said aloud handing over an envelope that contained their tickets and had the same thing written on the front of it. Both Paul and Stephanie laughed.

"I swear, I had nothing to do with that." Levesque told her with a big smile plastered across his bearded face as he took the tickets.

"Oh, I'm sure you didn't." Steph chuckled, and then gave an eye roll, before she pushed the baby stroller forward passed the check in and to the actual admission area.

"What this?" Aurora asked, her voice full of curiosity as she watched an aquarium employee put a lime green plastic bracelet on her hand while her daddy was bending down a bit for the guy.

"It's your bracelet to go in to see the fish, Aurora. See, Mommy and Daddy each have one too." Stephanie explained holding up her hand so that her child could see the green plastic on her arm.

From the moment that they entered the actual aquarium, Aurora was in charge of deciding on which exhibit they went to first. She loved pointing the way from on top of her daddy's big broad shoulders like she was a princess sitting on top of her royal thrown with all the other children visitors below being mere peasants.

"Wow! We under water wif the fishies!" The three year old exclaimed with excitement as they entered an aquarium tunnel. She was truly amazed by the fact that so many fish were swimming all around them in each and every direction she looked.

"Shh, yes, isn't that awesome, just remember to use your inside voice. You don't want to scare them." Stephanie told her as she bent down in front of the stroller to check on Andrew who was beginning to make little whimpers like he was waking up.

"What do you think of those fish, honey?" Paul asked his daughter as he brought her closer to one side of the tank so she could actually put her little hands on the glass.

"I wanna take one home." She replied raising her eyebrows to show her enthusiasm.

"You can't do that, sweetie, they like a big tank like this." Steph told her daughter while she lifted her son up from the stroller.

"Dat?" Andy quickly said aloud as his little finger pointed out toward a school of fish. He was immediately fully alert because of all the marine life happening around him.

"We keep it in our bathy tub, Mommy." Aurora suggested pointing to an individual colorful fish that she had decided she wanted to take home.

"I don't think so, sweetheart. Maybe Santa can bring you a little goldfish this Christmas." Stephanie told the three year old as she too moved close to the same side of the tank to let her son take a closer look.

"Yeah, I think that's the closest to this you are going to get, Aurora." Paul added with a chuckle before giving his little girl a kiss on the cheek.

"Dat!" Andrew exclaimed raising both hands up toward a large hammer head shark that was swimming right.

"Woah, look at the size of that shark, Aurora." Levesque commented to his little girl.

"No, make it go away! I don't like it!" She whined putting her face down on top of her father's head of dirty blonde hair that was neatly pulled back in a ponytail. The three year old was hiding her eyes so that she didn't have to see the big shark.

"Maybe we should move on to the next exhibit." Steph suggested placing her son back into his stroller. The baby began to pitch a fit until his mother sat the seat up so that it was no longer reclining back from when he was napping.

The next section they went to was the river otters tank. Both children were enthralled by the furry little animals who were constantly doing underwater flips and turns. Once again, Aurora expressed her wish to adopt one and take it home.

"Daddy will buy you one from the gift shop before we go home." Levesque promised with a smile.

Seeing the harbor seals being fed kept the three year old's attention for a few minutes before she was ready to move onto the touch tank that housed sting rays inside of it. Steph sat back with Andrew while Paul took his little girl off his shoulders and led her over to the tank. Having a moment of downtime, Steph removed her cell phone from her purse in the underneath compartment of the stroller. She had a text message, and she was not at all surprised to find out that it was from Kurt.

"Where r u? I tried calling the house. We need 2 talk. I love u." She read the message to herself.

Stephanie slowly exhaled as she continued to stare at the short text message. Was it terrible that she didn't feel like even replying to it? Today was going so well and she and the children were having such a good time, that she didn't want to spoil it with drama. It wasn't that she didn't love her husband, because she did. But up until the text message, she was doing a good job forgetting that she was dealing with strong marital discord at home. Angle's text message made all the stress come flooding back into her body, causing her to feel tense.

"Mommy! Look! I petting a stingy ray!" Aurora called out demanding her mother's attention.

Stephanie's eyes immediately darted up and over at her child. Paul was holding her up high enough so that she could lean into the shallow tank and touch the smooth rays with her hand. The sight of her daughter's enjoyment brightened Steph's mood. She cracked a smile and then quickly made her phone go into camera mode. She got up from the bench and approached them to get a nice clear picture to preserve the moment in time.

Levesque, Stephanie, and the kids hit a few more exhibits before deciding to get something to eat and do one final stop at the gift shop.

"Hey Steph, do you think she'll want to take a picture in there?" Paul asked with a chuckle pointing over to a photo op set up of a shark behind a metal scuba diver cage that was open for people to go inside to have a picture taken.

"Don't even suggest it." Steph muttered with a light chuckle as they passed by on their way to the cafe for a light lunch.

"What did you like the best?" Paul asked his daughter as they sat next to each other in the cafe.

"I liked the fishies, the stingy rays, and river otters, and the horsey crabs." Aurora listed swinging her legs while they dangled from her boaster chair.

"You liked the jelly fish too." Steph mentioned with a smile as she fed baby Andrew some of his baby food from home that she had brought.

"Yeah, can we get my otter now? Daddy said I could have one." She asked with a voice of impatience.

"Let's finish up our lunch and then we will stop in the gift shop." Stephanie replied taking a bite of her own food before going back to feeding her one year old.

When their late lunch was finished, they made their way over to the gift shop that was right by the exit. Aurora was eager to go inside but Steph stopped the stroller just outside the store.

"Aurora, you and Daddy go ahead inside the gift shop. Mommy needs to use the bathroom and the baby needs a diaper change. We'll be right back."

Before Aurora could even protest the idea of her mother leaving with Andrew, she was gone. Paul did a great job keeping his daughter occupied when the two of them entered the store. Aurora didn't waste any time finding her stuffed river otter that Daddy had promised her earlier. And just because he loved his little princess, Levesque bought his daughter a colorful book about all the different sea creatures that reside in the Atlantic Ocean.

"Sorry we took so long, there was a line in the bathroom." Steph explained when she finally met up with them as they were finishing up making their purchase.

"Look what I got!" Aurora exclaimed holding up her two new presents for her mom to see.

"Oh wow, your daddy must love you!" Stephanie answered back with a smile as they left the shop and then the aquarium itself.

As they walked back through the parking lot to where their automobiles were parked, Stephanie held onto one of Aurora's hands while wheeling the stroller with the other. Paul held onto Aurora's other hand. He loved the fact that in all outward appearances, they looked like a happy family. Hell, anyone who saw them probably even assumed that Andrew was his son. And would that really be so bad? If he and Steph did ever get back together then Andrew Vincent would be is step-son.

"All right, here we are. Let's get you kids loaded up." Levesque commented as soon as they reached Stephanie's Porsche Cayenne and his Hummer.

Stephanie first started her car and rolled down the windows before she put Andrew in his car seat. Paul was nice enough to stick both the diaper bag and her designer handbag in the front passenger seat before he helped his little girl into her big girl chair.

"I love you, sweetie. I hope you like your new book and your otter." He told her before giving her a few kisses and hugs.

"I do like him, his name is Flipsy cus he flips underwater like this." Aurora told him while making the stuffed animal move through the air like she had seen the real thing do at the aquarium.

"That's a good name, honey. You be good for Mommy and I'll see you soon." Paul added before giving her one last kiss on her forehead before he closed the car door.

By that time Steph had already gotten the stroller folded up and into the back of her Porsche. There was really nothing left for them to do but say their own goodbyes and leave.

"This was a great idea you had. The kids really had a great time...I did too. It was nice doing this as a family without any drama." Steph admitted with a warm smile as she looked deep into his hazel eyes.

":I had a great time too. We should do more things as a family more often...Because we still are a family, Steph...We always will be." Levesque said back in a softer voice that was kind and gentle.

There was a moment of awkward silence between them. It was like neither one of them were wanting to make the first move and say goodbye. It was Steph who took the initiative.

"Goodbye." She whispered giving him a quick hug and a little peck on the cheek.

"Oh, yeah, goodbye, have a safe trip back." He told her in almost a stutter. Paul was a bit thrown off guard by the quick hug and kiss on the cheek that he never saw coming. It happened before he even had time to react to it.

"Thanks, you too." Steph said back before she walked to the driver side door and got inside.

Levesque moved out from behind her car. He propped his left elbow up against the back of his Hummer and watched as his former wife slowly pulled her Porsche Cayenne out from the parking space. And then, before Stephanie put her car in drive, her eyes met his and she gave him a smile one final time. Paul did the same, and even gave her a slight wave with his right hand. As the vehicle was put into drive and started going forward, Levesque saw Aurora give him a quick wave goodbye from her window. He quickly blew her a kiss and then looked on as the automobile traveled to the other end of the parking lot, and then finally turned onto the road.

"There goes my family..."


	48. Chapter 48

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-Eight

"Mommy, we go back to see the fishies soon?" Aurora asked her mother, her eyes scanned each car that they passed on the interstate on the way home.

"Sure we can." Steph promised her child with a smile before she flipped on the Porsche's signal to merge into the right exit lane.

"I want my Daddy to come too." The three year old added giving her stuffed otter a tight hug because it was a present from her father.

Stephanie couldn't have been more pleased with her ex-husband. He was really on top of his game as a father. Aurora just had a fun educational and interactive day with both of her parents and it was all Paul's doing. Hell, it wasn't just her three year old that had enjoyed the day, she did too. Getting to go out with her children without the drama and stress that she had been under lately was like Levesque had created for her a perfect oasis in her week. She was grateful to him for stepping up and behaving like the father she knew he could be.

"We're home." Stephanie commented aloud as her Porsche Cayenne turned from the back road to the long paved driveway that led to the large luxury mansion.

With the press of an overhead button, the garage door opened allowing her to bring the small SUV into its parking spot in the garage. Before Steph even brought the vehicle to a stop, she noticed that Kurt's white Escalade was parked in its spot on the other side next to hers. He was at the house. What was he doing there the day after she had asked him to leave?

Stephanie came to a complete stop, put the car in park, and then killed the engine. She then reached for her seatbelt buckle to unbuckle herself from the driver seat when the sound of knocking on the passenger side window startled her enough that it caused her to physically jump. She darted her eyes in the direction of the abrupt sound and saw her husband, Kurt, standing at the passenger door with a look of contempt on his face.

"Where the hell have you been? Unlock the doors!" He commanded in an abrasive voice as his finger pointed to the lock on the interior of the car.

"You want to try saying that a little nicer?" Steph hollered back completely annoyed by his demeanor.

Aurora started crying because of the screaming that literally came out of nowhere without any warning what so ever. And when the three year old started crying, baby Andrew immediately followed his older sister's lead and began to wail.

"Please open the door so I can get my son out." Angle retorted in a much calmer voice while he stared intensely at his wife.

Stephanie rolled her eyes and clicked the unlock button on the side panel of her driver side door. When the doors were unlocked, Angle quickly went around to the other side of the cross over and opened the driver side back door where his son was.

"You just terrified the kids!" Stephanie scolded as she got out of the vehicle and slammed her door shut while he was getting Andrew out of his car seat.

"_I_ was terrified! I tried calling the house all afternoon, no answer! I tried texting you and then calling your cell, no answer! I come home to find no one home! You wouldn't believe what went through my mind about what could have happened to you and the kids!" Kurt yelled back after taking his crying baby into his arms.

"Lower your voice. I took the kids to the aquarium in Norwalk. I'm sorry that I didn't answer but my phone must have been on vibrate." Steph explained as she spoke with a voice that was significantly calmer and quieter.

"Shh, it's okay buddy, Daddy is sorry that he scared you guys." Kurt told his son in his best soothing voice as he rocked him in his arms.

Steph exhaled and shook her head, she then moved passed him so that she could get to the passenger side of the car where Aurora was still buckled in.

"Mommy, why he yelling?" Aurora asked trying to hold back her tears.

"It's okay, baby, Kurt was just worried, that's all." Steph assured her daughter as she lifted her from her seat and put her on her feet. Stephanie really wanted to reply that it was because he was a jackass, but she thought better of it.

"Kurt back from his trip?" The three year old then asked with surprise. Her mother didn't reply.

Angle hugged his son close to him as he took slow deep breathes. He knew that he really needed to get his anger in check. Carrying on and scaring the children was not in any way going to endear him to Stephanie. After all, he was only trying to get a hold of her today so that they could get together and work things out. The fact that she had been mysteriously MIA all afternoon had caused his jealousy to spike as he immediately jumped to the conclusion that Paul Levesque had something to do with it.

"Dada dada dada dada dada." Babbled the baby as he brought his hand to Angle's face while his father carried him toward the door that led to the house that his mom and sister were entering.

Steph had the urge to criticize Kurt's inappropriate behavior right then and there, but she stifled herself after hearing her baby son's happy voice spoken toward his daddy. The children didn't need to hear them bickering, she was willing to wait until they could be alone to verbally thrash him.

"What the hell?" Steph whispered to herself under her breath the moment she entered her kitchen and found a wrapped bouquet of two dozen red roses lying on the counter top.

Stephanie couldn't help but scoff. It was obvious that Angle had every intention of trying to grovel and try and suck up to her with two dozen long stemmed red roses. As if him bringing her flowers was enough to make up for his behavior a few moments ago, and everything she had gone through in the last few days. She wasn't going to even acknowledge the roses. He couldn't buy his way out of trouble this time.

"Look, I'm sorry I flew off the handle in the garage, but I got really agitated when I couldn't get a hold of you and you and the kids weren't at home. We need to talk, Steph." Angle told his wife the moment that he joined her in the kitchen, still holding their one year old.

Steph braced with her hands on either side of the kitchen sink. Her eyes focused on the gorgeous view of her property from the kitchen window. Stephanie didn't want to talk now; that was the whole reason she asked for him to leave, to give her space.

"I really don't want to talk now. I think I made myself clear yesterday that I needed time away from you." Steph replied bluntly.

"And you've had some time. We've both had the night to think things through. I'm sorry about the arrest. I screwed up and I thank God that neither one of the kids were with me when it happened, okay? We need to put all this behind us and move on as a family." Kurt told her as he went over to the wrapped bouquet of roses like he was getting ready to present them to her.

"It's not just the arrest, Kurt. A lot of things came to the surface with the argument we had; things that can't simply be fixed with two dozen long stemmed roses." She admitted the moment she heard the crinkling of the plastic wrap. She was still staring off into the distance.

Kurt let out a sigh and let go of the flowers. Steph had just confirmed that their problems were bigger than the DUI. Problems that were troubling enough for her to want an extended amount of time apart. How would that help though? If they had problems, they should be trying to work on them. Why would he simply walk away from her and their one year old and miss being a part of her pregnancy? How would that help their marriage?

"Fine, let's address the issues that came up in the fight. We were mad when things were said. I know I did and said things I regret because I was so angry. We're married and we have a beautiful family, let's work it out, babe. I'm wearing my wedding band and I've got your ring in my pocket, I want my wife and my family back." Kurt pled, like a lawyer who was desperate to defend his case with the hopes of swaying a deadlocked jury.

"Kurt, look! This is Flipsy! Daddy got him for me at the awarium!" Aurora announced as she approached her step-father, completely interjecting herself in the midst of the intense discussion. She had just run back into the kitchen after putting her brand new book in the living room.

Angle's eyes drifted down to the three year old who was smiling up at him while holding the stuffed animal up for him to see. As the child's words began to sink into his consciousness, the color began to drain from his face.

Hearing her daughter innocently reveal the fact that Paul was present at their aquarium outing compelled Stephanie to turn around to face her husband. He looked like the rug had just been pulled out from under him. She worried that he was a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment.

"Aurora, why don't you go upstairs and show Flipsy your bedroom? I'm sure he'll like to play up there." Steph suggested, doing her best to quickly get her three year old out of the room before the backlash that she knew was coming from Kurt.

"Okay, come on, Flipsy!" Aurora giggled as she ran out of the kitchen while twisting and turning the stuffed animal through the air.

"You were with him today?" Kurt inquired in a hoarse voice that almost sounded like it was coming from his throat. The focus of his eyes were now solely on his wife.

"Yeah, he met me and the kids at the aquarium. He invited us, actually. The kids had a great time. I did it for them." She explained folding her arms while looking right back at him.

"Well isn't that nice. I can barely sleep or eat because I'm so upset and worried about our marriage, while you're off spending the day with your ex-husband. How do you think this looks, Steph? How am I suppose to wrap my mind around this? Did you think about me at all today? How I would feel about my wife and son going on a family outing with not just some random other guy, but the man I specifically said I didn't want my son around?" Said Angle in a forceful voice that while intense, was still low in volume since he was still holding his child.

"No, I didn't think about you. I was actually happy that I was feeling good and not home puking my guts up and consumed with all the drama. It had nothing to do with Paul being there. I'm just happy that he is making an effort to forge a relationship with his daughter. I'm not going to put a damper on that because of your pathetic insecurities." Stephanie immediately retorted with a level of intensity that matched his.

Angle scoffed at her words. He brought his baby son over to the nearest counter top and sat him on it. He then began examining the one year olds arms, legs, and face without any explanation as to what he was doing.

"What are you doing?" Steph asked in a voice of annoyance while approaching them.

"I'm checking our baby for any bruises or scratches. I don't think you realize what that guy is capable of. He put his hands on him once, I wouldn't put it past him doing it again when you weren't looking." Kurt explained as he scrutinized the baby's soft skin for impurities that weren't there.

"That's bullshit. Paul would never hurt a child. He has had his faults in the past, but you have no proof that he had anything to do with Andrew falling off the couch that day. He was never alone with Andrew at the aquarium. He didn't even hold him once. The fact that you think I would ever put one of my children in harm's way really infuriates me." She told him through grit teeth. She was shaking with anger as she spoke, trying desperately not to scream in his face.

"You know what infuriates me, Steph? The fact that you are making more of an effort in you and your daughter's relationship with your ex-husband than you are in our marriage. If we're going to work this out, we both have to be on board. I can't try for the both of us." Angle replied closing the space between himself and his wife.

"I need space! I'm not ready to "work this out" yet! And I'll be honest, with the way you're acting right now, I am starting to wonder if I will ever want to!" Stephanie blurted out, her anger and frustration finally brimming over. Her outburst of emotion caused the baby to wail.

"Well then that's something that we have in common then! I came here with the hopes of fixing things between us so I could put this ring back on your finger! Now, I don't know if I should give it back to you! Not when my wife doesn't want to stand by me, for better or for worse!" Angle shot back after he grabbed Steph's wedding ring from his pocket and held it up to her.

"Then don't give it back to me! Do whatever you want with it! Just give me back my baby and then get the fuck out! There's the door, Kurt, use it!" Steph screamed before pointing right at the garage door that he had entered from.

Andrew screamed out through his tears, his back arched like he was in pain, his face beet red. He was acting out because of his parents' hollering that he wasn't used to being in the middle of.

"You want me gone? Fine, I'm gone! But he's not 'your baby', he's ours! Andrew is _my_ son too, yours and mine, he's not Paul's. And neither is that tiny baby growing inside of you! It's all mine, and nothing will ever change or make me forget that!" Angle fired back pointing his finger specifically at his wife's flat womb where their tiny little embryo was implanted inside of her.

"No one is debating that." Steph answered back with an eye roll as she moved forward to take her son from the countertop.

Kurt watched as Andrew Vincent immediately began to settle down once he was being held by his mother and she had broke the cycle of yelling. The fighting was suddenly replaced by a silence in the kitchen that was only pierced by the sound of their one year old sharply breathing in and whimpering with each breath. There was nothing left for him to say.

Without saying another word, Angle slipped her wedding ring back into his pocket then reached over and grabbed the large bouquet of flowers from the counter. He then turned his back on his wife and son, and walked right out the door to the garage. He felt like a zombie, completely lifeless as he hit the garage door button on the wall. On the way to his car, he stopped briefly at one of the large green garbage cans. Kurt held up the roses in front of him. He shook his head; thinking about what a waste buying them for her had turned out to be. In one fluid motion, he lifted the lid of the can and tossed them inside.

"What a waste..." He muttered as the durable plastic lid slammed back down into place.


	49. Chapter 49

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Forty-Nine

"You're packing?" voiced Vince as he stood in the doorway of the guest room he had put his son-in-law in.

McMahon wore a perplexed look on his face while he watched Angle shoving his clothing back in his duffle bag. The only conclusion that he could come up with from what he saw was that Kurt was packing up to leave. But why? He had only stayed over one night. Did he and Steph make amends already? Was he going home to her?

Angle remained silent, not even looking in his father-in-law's direction after hearing him speak. He didn't even know what time it was. After returning to the McMahon estate after his blow up with his wife, Kurt had collapsed on the guest bed from exhaustion. He had been mentally and physically drained. Being passed out for who knows how many hours was the first decent rest he had gotten since all of the trouble started. Sleep had been a brief escape from the reality and the gravity of his situation. Unfortunately for him, it was all there waiting for him when he woke up. Judging by the need for a light in the room, Angle was originally willing to bet that it was at least dinner time. Now, with Vince's arrival home, he knew it had to be later than that.

"Kurt, don't ignore me, God damn it! What's going on?" Vince persisted, demanding to not be kept in the dark about things.

McMahon's insistence for an explanation caused Angle to cease his action. Abruptly, he allowed himself to plop down on the bed in a seated position. He brought both his hands to his face and proceeded to talk through them.

"I got worried because I couldn't reach Steph all afternoon. So I went over to the house with some roses to try and work things out. She had taken the kids to spend the day with Levesque at an aquarium. She's acting like she doesn't even care that our marriage is on the rocks. She didn't even want her ring back." Kurt muttered in a voice that was clearly strained.

"Jesus Christ..." McMahon commented moving further into the room. He sat down next to his son-in-law who he could hear begin to cry in his hands.

"Damn it, Kurt, suck it up! I was easy on you last night because you had spent the night in jail, but now your sniveling is just getting old! Be a man, damn it! What did I tell you last night? Did I not tell you to give her a day or two?" Vince hollered out of frustration.

"I know, Dad, but the thought of that son of a bitch being around my wife and son..." Angle trailed off and then removed his hands from his face as he breathed in deep, unable to finish his statement.

"I know, I get it, okay? I'll take care of that son of a bitch, don't you worry about it. I'll give him enough media appearances and house shows that he won't have time to bother Stephanie." McMahon promised before continuing: "You just need to keep your focus on what really matters. And what matters is being successful in talking things out with your wife after she has time to calm down, and finding something to keep yourself busy during your suspension."

"I don't know if I can get through this. I can't be with my family and I can't wrestle..." Kurt replied bringing his right hand to the back of his head to itch the hair that was starting to grow in since he hadn't shaved it in the past few days.

"Well, let's see...What about that mixed martial arts. You've been telling me for a year now how you'd like to give it a try. Even if you don't fight but end up just doing a little bit of training and conditioning, it would help get out some of that anger and aggression. What do you think?" McMahon suggested extending an arm around the back of his son-in-law.

"I'd love to have even just five minutes with Levesque in the cage. I'd fuck him up good for coming near my wife..." Angle commented while staring down at the plush carpet floor.

"Now that'd be something I'd put as a main event on a pay-per-view!" Vince's voice boomed with enthusiasm after he let out a laugh.

"I'll call up my buddy, Brock. He's got a lot of connections in the MMA world." Kurt added using his hand to scratch the forming beard on his face.

"You do that, in the meantime though, I want you to stay here. My birthday is this weekend and I want the whole family to be here for it."

Angle simply nodded in agreement. He was taking his father-in-law's advisement to heart. It was clear that his gut reaction to focus his mind on his wife's ex-husband would definitely only add fuel to the fire; his fight with Stephanie was surely proof of that. No matter how hard it was going to be, Kurt was going to give Steph the space she wanted. After all, he knew that he would see her and the children in the coming weekend for Vince's birthday party. Hopefully, that would be the perfect opportunity for them to make amends and come together as a family.

* * *

With all the arguing she and Kurt had done in the past few days, Stephanie had entirely forgot about Andrew Vincent's scheduled doctor's appointment on Friday afternoon. Luckily, that morning she had noticed that she had three missed calls and two voice mail messages on her home phone. Two of the three calls had been her paranoid husband trying to reach her and who had left an agitated voice message. The other call, however, had been from Greenwich Pediatrics reminding her that baby Andrew had a scheduled appointment at two o'clock with Dr, Mott.

"Shit." Steph muttered to herself before quickly deleting the message. The last thing she wanted to do in the afternoon on a Friday was spend more than an hour in a doctor's office with her children.

She couldn't just say 'fuck it' and not show up with Andrew for the appointment. This was her son's one year old check up where he was sure to get a whole round of shots and a few tasks to track his development. Oh she and Andy were going, but what about Aurora? Was it really fair for her three year old daughter to have to come along?

Stephanie tucked her bottom lip in her mouth while glancing over at her little girl who was kneeling in front of the coffee table in the living room coloring. Steph was racking her brain to figure out possible options for childcare for her three year old for an hour or so during Andy's doctor appointment. Grandma and Pop were both busy with work, so they were definitely out of the question. And there was no way in hell she was going to call up Kurt when she had just gotten him to give her some time apart. Oh, what about Paul? If he wasn't busy today, she was sure that he would love to spend more time with their daughter.

With the phone still in her hand, Stephanie used her thumb to dial her former husband's cell phone number on the keypad and then hit send. She brought the phone to her ear and began to patiently wait as it began to ring repeatedly.

"Hello?" She heard his voice say on the other line.

"Hey Paul, it's Steph. Listen, I was wondering if you were willing to watch Aurora for a couple of hours today. I had forgotten that Andrew has an appointment with the pediatrician, and I'd hate to make her have to sit there in a doctor's office for more than an hour."

"Oh yeah, sure, no problem. What time did you need me to swing by?" Levesque asked back without any hesitation.

"The baby's check up is at two so if you could be here at one, that'd be great." Stephanie told him as she quickly ran over to the one year old who was about to pull down a plant while he was getting to his feet from the living room floor. His mother intervening caused Andy to give a loud spoiled whine.

"Well, it sounds like you have your hands full over there so I'm going to let you go. I'll see you at one." Paul said with a chuckle.

"Okay, thanks Paul...Bye."

The later part of the morning flew by since Stephanie was kept busy by bathing both children, dressing them, and feeding them an early lunch. Having Paul come at one o'clock worked out well since Steph was already finished getting herself showered, dressed, and her makeup and hair fixed.

Levesque's Hummer pulled into the driveway with only a few minutes until one. He used the cylinder running board on his SUV to step out and then brought his hands up to the back of his head to pull his dirty blonde ponytail tight. He was wearing a nice cotton polo shirt, one that he knew his former wife would approve of, and a pair of designer jeans.

While Paul was overjoyed to get a phone call from Steph asking him if he wanted to spend time with their child, he couldn't help but be curious as to why Mr. 1996 drunken gold medalist wasn't there to watch the kids. After all, that was how it usually went. For the past year, Stephanie had let Angle take over virtually all the responsibilities and privileges of being Aurora's father. Why now was he no longer her number one choice? Maybe she was finally seeing how much of an effort he was putting into being a good Dad as of late. Perhaps she was even starting to have some of the old feelings for him again. God he hoped so.

"Thanks for looking after her today. I'm sorry I asked on such short notice but the appointment completely skipped my mind." Steph told him with a quick smile the minute she allowed him access to her home via the front door.

"It's no problem, I'm happy I get to see her today. Is she already dressed? I wanted to take her to a park in town. They just put up a really nice playground that I think she'd enjoy." Levesque answered back, returning a sweet smile of his own.

"Oh yeah, she's dressed and ready to go. She was so excited when I told her you were coming over. She's in the living room with Andrew." Stephanie told him, titling her head slightly while her fingers fiddled with her dangly earring as she put one in one ear and then one in the other.

Before venturing down the hallway to see his daughter, Levesque took a quick moment to let his eyes scan his ex-wife. His hazel eyes tracked her body from top to bottom. God, even going to a pediatrician's office, she looked sexy.

"You and Aurora can take off whenever you're ready, I just have to load up the diaper bag and Andy and I are leaving." Steph commented, not noticing that her ex had just checked her out.

Paul nodded, taking her mention that she was almost ready to leave with the baby as a cue that he needed to go get his daughter from the living room and be on his way to the park. He walked through the hallway, not even having to think about where the living room was located since he had been in the spacious home so many times before now.

Levesque smiled immediately when his eyes fell upon his little girl. She was sitting Indian style on the floor with four stuffed animals sitting around her to form a circle. In the center of that circle was her plastic tea set.

"Are you having a tea party in here, honey?" Asked Paul after watching his child play undisturbed for a moment or two.

"Yeah, me, puppy, kitty, Teddy bear, and Flipsy." Aurora replied pointing to each of the stuffed animals, one by one, as she listed their names.

"Well I hate to break up the party, but you and I have a date for the park." Levesque announced moving further into the room toward where his daughter was playing.

"Hi!" Andrew piped with a flap of his hand. The one year old was sitting with his toys on the carpet floor near his half sister. He smiled at the sight of Paul for he was beginning to recognize him as a frequent visitor.

"Hey, Poopy Pirate." Paul chuckled, taking notice of Stephanie's second child.

"Why you call him "Poopy Pirate", Daddy?" Aurora asked after she got up and started pulling on her father's jeans for his attention to be brought back to her.

"Because he's a pirate that steals people's poopy and puts it in his diaper. He's a poopy pirate, that's why your mommy has to change his diaper so much." Levesque explained before he made a silly face.

His comment caused Aurora to throw her head back and let out a hearty laugh. She had her mommy's laugh, and it was contagious because baby Andy started laughing too.

"What's so funny in here?" Steph asked walking into the living room with Andrew's diaper bag and her purse hanging over one of her shoulders.

"Daddy called baby a poopy piwate cus he puts poopy in his diaper!" The three year old exclaimed through her continuous laughter.

"Oh, I'm sure we'll have to come up with a clever nick name for Daddy, now won't we." Steph replied with an eyebrow raise as she bent over and picked up her one year old.

"You know I've already got a nickname, Steph. I'm "The Game", and you personally know that I am that damn good." Paul answered back quickly with a naughty smile and a wink.

Stephanie rolled her eyes but couldn't help but let out a chuckle. She could feel her cheeks begin to warm, knowing that she was blushing. Why had he always been able to do that? She had given him enough encouragement just by laughing, she wasn't going to verbally feed into it.

"Well, we need to get going. I'm sure you guys will have a lot of fun at the park." Steph commenting, hoping to give the impression that she was ready for him to leave with their daughter so that she could be on her way with her son.

"You not go wif us, Mommy?" Aurora questioned, her blue eyes widened as she looked up at her mother in total surprise.

"No, I have to take baby Andy to his check up at the doctor's office. You go have some fun with Daddy and then he'll bring you home." Stephanie told her child as she shifted her one year old to her other hip. The one year old was trying his best to lean down as he reached for his toys on the floor below.

"But why can't you go wif us? I want you to go wif us! Why-" The three year old pressed on, this time narrowing her brow at the thought of not having her other parent there to partake in the outdoor fun.

"Aurora, stop, okay, I told you why! Now go have a good time with your father, I love you, and I will see later!" Stephanie snapped back out of frustration while she strengthened her grip on her squirming baby who was now beginning to whine.

Paul took the initiative and quickly scooped up his three year old before she showed any signs of getting upset by her mother's abrupt bitchiness. He gave his little girl a hug and a peck on the cheek. He was a bit surprised by the shift in Stephanie's demeanor. It wasn't like her to snap out at one of her children. Was something bothering her?

"Steph, take it easy. What's going on? You're not acting like yourself."

Levesque was looking right into her eyes for some hint of what was causing her to be on edge. He could tell something was off but it was obvious by her body language that she wasn't willing to open up to him.

"It's-It's nothing. I just have a lot on my mind today. I really didn't want to have to show up for this appointment, and the baby is now getting cranky because he didn't get his full nap, and then tomorrow is Dad's birthday party..." Steph explained listing off all of the stressors that she was currently dealing with. Well, all most all of them since she deliberately omitted her marital problems with Kurt, since it was her ex-husband she was talking to.

"Ugh, better you than me on that last one. Well, we're off. Aurora and I will be back before four. I'd love to keep her longer, but I just got a call this morning from one of your father's ass kissing assistants saying that I was added to three separate weekend house shows out in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. There went any weekend plans I had for my Friday night, Saturday, and Sunday."

"Wow, that's a lot to put upon you in such short notice. I wonder if someone got injured."

"No, I'm sure it's just your father being an asshole, trying to make my life miserable. I won't give him the satisfaction though. I'll put on three amazing matches with whomever they put me with." Paul commented as he began to walk out of the room with Aurora still in his arms.

"You always do. Have a good time, you two." Steph called back after them.

"We will, Mommy!" He hollered on his way to the front of the house.

Levesque didn't bother putting his three year old down so that she could walk along side of him out to the car. He rather enjoyed carrying her. It reminded him of when she was a baby.

"In you go..." Paul commented aloud as he sat his daughter in the preschool car seat that he had sat in the middle of the Hummer's large backseat.

"The park far away?" She asked swinging her legs back and forth while her father strapped her in securely.

"No, it's only a few minutes away. You'll love it. It has a huge play area with swings, slides, and lots of other stuff to have fun with."

"I want Mommy to come too." Aurora Rose confessed again, letting her pink bottom lip protrude slightly to show her sadness that she wasn't going to get what she wanted.

"I know, honey, I wish she could come with us too. But we're going to have a good time, just me and you." promised Paul after which he leaned forward and gave his child a kiss on her forehead.

It was times like this that he felt for his child. Aurora never did anything to deserve her parents divorcing. She had just been an innocent baby when the marriage dissolved. She had no memories of being a part of the Levesque family; a complete family with her mommy and daddy living together under one roof, and married. He couldn't blame his child for being jealous of Angle and Stephanie's new child who had just that. She deserved to have both of them with her, and not just one or the other.

The short drive to the nearby park was an uneventful one. Out of the many parks in Greenwich Connecticut, he had chosen a beautifully landscaped spacious one that had many activities for children of all ages. The area that he took Aurora to was the colorful playground that was framed in a bed of shredded tire chunks to give an extra springy soft ground for children to play on.

"I wanna climb up there!" Aurora announced the moment she stepped into the playground area. She was pointing to the loose hanging rope that made a number of squares for her to put her feet in to climb up to the first level of a play tower.

"Go for it for it, princess. I'll be right here watching you." Levesque told her as he watched her begin to climb. He was confident in his child's ability to make it up safely since the ropes were secured in place both on the ground and at the top where it met the playground equipment.

"Yay! Look at me! I up high, Daddy, look!" Aurora jumped up and down, immediately celebrating when she made it up.

"Wow, you're such a big girl. Is that your castle?"

"Yeah, you can come up too! Go that way, Daddy!" Aurora instructed with enthusiasm as she pointed over at the curly pole that was on the other side of the play set as an alternative way for a child to get up there.

"Here I come, Princess Aurora. I just slayed a two headed dragon to keep this castle and your royal kingdom safe." Paul said as he stepped onto the metal tubing while playing fully into the imaginary story he wanted to create for his little girl.

"Oh no, look, it a monster behind you, go fast!" Aurora shouted running over to watch her father take the three steps up the curly pole to reach the platform.

Levesque let out a laugh and when he joined his daughter on the play set, he quickly whipped around and with an imaginary sword in his hand, he swung a wide stroke, making an appropriate sound effect for his action.

"Yay! You got him! But oh no, look, a monster is over there. He climbed up the slide! Get him, Daddy!" The three year old squealed with excitement as she pointed to the other end of the play set where she imagined a creature standing.

Paul sprung into action as he leaped onto the wooden bridge that bounced and shifted all around as he ran across it. He lunged pretending to stab his imaginary sword right into the throat of the monster. And then, he jumped onto the platform and performed what would be a shoulder block to the already wounded monster.

"Good job! Now we safe up here!" She celebrated jumping up and down.

"Oh no, Aurora! The monster bit Daddy's arms, and now he's turning into a monster, too!" Levesque announced as he began to thrash around, exposing his bottom teeth outward through his top lip to make himself look like a monster.

Aurora screamed and immediately ran over to the wooden ladder that lead to a higher tower. As she did her best to climb, she was looking back at her father who began to slowly make his way back across the bridge like he was playing the lead of Frankenstein with his muscular arms stretched out in front of him.

"I'm gonna eat you up, little girl!" Paul said in his best monster voice that was deep with a lot of heavy breathing.

He deliberately waited until his daughter had safely made it to the top tower before he climbed the ladder himself.

"You not get me, monster!" Aurora shouted out with delight as she then sat down at the long curly slide that lead to the playground tire mesh below.

She didn't even wait for the 'monster' to reach the top of tower before she pushed herself forward and slid down the plastic slide while laughing the whole way down.

"I down here now, monster! You not get me!" She taunted with a bit of attitude the moment she jumped off the bottom of the slide. Her hands were on her hips, and she even stuck her little pink tongue out of her mouth to add to the effect of her words.

When Levesque reached the top level, he looked down at his daughter and then let out a bellowing monster roar. Showing off his athleticism, Paul leaped right off the top of the slide and landed on his feet only a foot or so away from his little girl. This caused Aurora to scream again and start running away.

"Now I'm mad! I'm going to enjoy eating you all up!" He called out as he started to go after her. This time he actually quickened his pace and ran after her.

Aurora continued to scream as she noticed her daddy gaining ground on her as she was now running through the lush green grass meadow right next to the playground. Right when he was about to grab her, she dropped down onto the ground and curled up in a ball, as an attempt to protect herself from the monster.

"I got you now! Hahahaha!" Levesque exclaimed in his low monster voice while he quickly knelt down beside her. He bent over to start tickling his little girl so that she would leave her fetal position and allow him to start to blow air right on her clothed stomach that caused her to howl with laughter.

"Stop, Daddy, stop, no more!" She finally demanded through her uncontrollable laughter.

He immediately stopped upon his child's request and then laid down in the grass next to her. She was still laughing even though he had quit tickling her. It was obvious that she was enjoying every second of her pretend play with her father.

"You having fun, honey?" Paul asked, even though he knew what the answer was going to be. He wanted to hear her say it.

"Yeah, lots. Mommy come here after she done at the doctor?" Aurora asked rolling over in the grass so that she was now facing her father.

"I don't think so, sweetie. She's going to want to take the baby home."

"I no like that baby anymore. He tries to take Mommy away from me. Kurt need to take him on busy-ness wif him." Aurora Rose told her father, speaking what exactly was on her three year old mind aloud. Her words were like echoes of what her father had whispered to her only a week ago.

"Kurt's on business?" Paul asked, narrowing his eyes, as this was the first he had heard about Angle being gone since Steph didn't mention it.

"Yeah, he went on busy-ness. Then he got home after the awarium and was mad." Aurora divulged as she began to play with the blades of grass between her and her father.

"What was he mad at mommy about? Were they fighting?" Levesque asked back quickly, sitting up because of the importance of what his daughter was telling him.

"Mommy tolded me to go upstairs wif Flipsy. I hearded mean words and baby crying. When the noise gone, Mommy comed upstairs and said that Kurt back on busy-ness." Recalled the three year old as she began pulling out handfuls of grass.

"Was Mommy upset? Did you see her crying?"

"Yeah, she cry a lot holding the baby. I fink she miss Kurt." The three year old replied, giving her guess as to why her mother was so upset after her step-father left.

The right side of Paul's mouth, pulled taunt as he began to smirk. His three year old's retelling of the past day's events were as clear as day to him. Kurt and Stephanie had been fighting, and he was now out of the house. It all made sense now: Angle's absence today, Stephanie being on edge in the living room.

"Do Mommy and Kurt say mean words a lot to each other?" Paul asked without hesitation.

At first, Aurora just shrugged her shoulders, but then she gave him a nod that made it clear that yesterday wasn't the first time she had heard the two of them arguing. This meant that things hadn't been going well for them recently. And then Paul realized the reason behind Stephanie's disheveled appearance the night he brought her over soup.

"You're a good girl, sweetheart." Paul told his daughter before giving her a pat on the back.

If it wasn't for his three year old's testimony about what went on in the Angle household, he would have never known that the Angle marriage was on shaky ground. This was all too good to be true. First Angle gets arrested for a DUI, bringing shame to the company, and now he was "on business" away from Stephanie. This was turning out to be the perfect opportunity for him to get closer to his former wife, so that she could see that he was still that amazing guy she had fallen for those number of years ago.

* * *

"Did you have a good time with Daddy?" Stephanie immediately asked her daughter after she opened the front door to greet them.

"Yeah! I go see my animals now!" Aurora exclaimed, giving her mother's leg a quick hug, before she ran inside the house to where she had left her stuffed animals in the living room.

"Thanks again, Paul. You were a real lifesaver today." Steph admitted, turning her attention to her daughter's father.

"No problem, I'm happy I could help. Did everything come out all right at the appointment?" He asked, he propped his arm up on the frame of the open doorway.

"Yeah, Andrew is right on track with his development. He had to have a few shots, but he did fine."

"How about you, Steph. How are you holding up, today? Levesque asked leaning himself inside slightly as he asked a personal question that he hoped would evoke an emotional response.

Stephanie's eyebrows furrowed immediately in response to his question that seemed a little out of the blue. She then raised her brow and put on a polite smile before replying to him.

"I'm holding up just fine, thanks." Steph heard herself lie. She definitely did not want her former husband to have any inclination about what was going on in her personal life. Her marriage was her business.

"Are you sure? Because if there's ever anything you need to talk about, you know that I'm here for you." Levesque pointed out looking right into her eyes.

His words caused Stephanie to shift her weight between her feet, like she was fidgeting in place. She felt uncomfortable. Her mind was desperately trying to play catch up and figure out where all this was coming from. Was there something written across her forehead that said "my husband and I are separated"? Perhaps it was because of her losing her patience with their daughter in front of him earlier in the day.

"Thank you for the offer, Paul, but I'm okay. Have a safe trip out to the Midwest." She said with her polite smile plastered on her face. Her hand now gripped the doorknob and she was slowly beginning to close it.

"Thanks, I'll keep in touch. We should try and get together next week sometime to be with our daughter." Paul suggested, moving his arm and taking a step back so that he wouldn't be in the way of the door.

"Okay, sounds good, bye." Steph replied back quickly as she closed the door before he even had the chance to say it back to her.

"Well that conversation ended abruptly." Paul thought to himself as he began to walk the path in front of the home that lead to the driveway where he was parked.

He could sense his former wife tensing up the moment he asked her about how she was doing. It was clear that she was holding back, purposely not telling him about her problems with her current husband. This only cemented Paul's belief that her "oh so perfect" marriage was falling apart. He wanted to be there for her in the fallout. She couldn't keep her drama with Angle a secret forever. It was only a matter of time before she confided in him. And when that happened, he would be that shoulder for her to cry on, like Angle had been for her during their marital strife.

"My, my, how the tables have turned." He muttered aloud to himself with a smug smile.


	50. Chapter 50

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty

Friday night had come, and with it a blanket of stars hovered over the Connecticut summer sky. Shortly after dinner, Stephanie put her one year old to bed in the nursery. The baby cried for only a few minutes, before he settled down and then fell asleep inside the safety and comfort of his crib. In the meantime, Aurora Rose begged to have her second bath of the day before bed. While it wasn't necessary, Stephanie did not object. She was happy that her daughter liked to stay clean, of course, she knew it really had to do with how much the three year old like to play in the tub.

"I'm glad that you had so much fun with your daddy today." Steph told her daughter while she rubbed a soapy cloth up and down the child's back.

Aurora didn't reply, she was distracted by all her plastic toys that she had loaded into the bath tub while her mommy had been running the water to fill up the tub and putting in a cap full of Mr. Bubbles.

Ever since Paul had dropped their daughter off earlier in the day, Stephanie's thoughts had been fixated on how he was all of a sudden so concerned with how she was doing. She found it odd since he had been around a lot lately visiting their daughter, yet this was the first he asked about how she was holding up. What had happened during his visit with their daughter that had compelled him to inquire about her?

"Aurora, did you and Daddy talk about anything while you were at the park?" Steph finally asked aloud after giving it much thought.

In response to her mother's question, the three year old slowly nodded her head while she continued to play in the water.

"What did you talk about?" Steph then asked, as she moved the wash cloth around her child's neck and then down her arms.

"You." Aurora told her mother looking up at her with a grin.

"What about me? Did Daddy ask you something about me?" Stephanie asked without hesitation.

"Mmhmm, he ask bout Kurt on busy-ness, ven bout mean louded words, ven bout you cryin" Aurora told her mother, giving her best summary of the subjects of the conversation with her father.

Stephanie let the wash cloth fall into the warm bubble filled bath water and then brought her hand to her face to rub her eyes. She shook her head and let out a forced laugh.

It was now clear that her ex-husband had coerced the information about her and Kurt from his three year old daughter. No, would he really do that? Levesque had been on his very best behavior as of late. He was acting like he genuinely liked spending time with their child. She needed to find out for sure before she jumped to assumptions.

"Why did you and Daddy talk about that, Aurora? Did daddy ask you about me and Kurt or did you just feel like telling him?" She asked after removing her hand from her face.

"Daddy ask-dided me bout it. You mad at me, Mommy?" Aurora asked, worried that she had done something wrong by talking to her father.

"No, sweetheart, I'm not mad at you. I love you." Stephanie assured her daughter before she lend over the tub and gave her child a kiss on her wet cheek. She then reached in the water and picked up the wash cloth so that she could continue washing her daughter.

"You mad at Daddy?" The three year old then asked tilting her head to the side with curiosity. She was studying her mother's face as she waited for an answer from her.

"I'm disappointed in him. If Daddy wanted to know something about Mommy, he should have asked me, not you." Steph replied in an exhale after she had held in the air from a sharp inhale for a moment.

"And in the future, Aurora, if Daddy asks you any questions about me, or about Kurt, I want you to tell him that he needs to ask Mommy, not you. Do you understand?" She added leaning in close to her child to show the importance of what she was telling her.

"Mmmhmm." Aurora responded while at the same time giving a nod.

Stephanie smiled and watched as her three year old went back to playing happily with her bath toys. Steph had definitely sugar coated her feelings toward her former husband when answering their daughter. She was very put off by the idea of Paul pumping his child for information about her and Kurt. Why would he spend his precious time with his child asking her questions about her mother? Did he really think it was okay to put Aurora in the position of tale carrier? Could he not just be a man and ask her any personal question he had for Steph to her face?

* * *

Saturday had come and so had Vincent Kennedy McMahon's 64th birthday. Shane and Marissa had driven up from New York with Declan and Kenny and had gotten to the McMahon estate right on time for the festivities. It was Mrs. McMahon that greeted the first arrival of guests with a warm greeting and hugs all around. Vince had requested that his birthday party be restricted only to his immediate family unlike the previous year.

"Happy birthday, Vince. Hi, Kurt." Marissa said sweetly with a smile as she gave first her father-in-law a hug and then her sister-in-law's husband one. Declan and Kenny both then gave their grandfather a hug.

"Happy birthday, old man!" Shane O' Mac shouted out with a laugh the minute he finally entered the great room where Vince and Kurt were hanging out.

"Who the hell are you calling 'old man'?" Vince hollered back before striking a muscle pose that caused both Angle and Shane to start laughing. McMahon senior hugged his son and began to laugh himself.

"How it's it going, man?" Shane then asked his brother-in-law as he then gave him a quick hug too.

"I've been better, man, how are you, Marissa, and the kids doing?" Angle asked back as the smile faded from his face.

"We're good, we're good, thanks. Where's Steph and the kids? Didn't they come over with you?" Shane asked narrowing his eyes because of the fact that he had not seen his sister nor any of her children since he had arrived.

"No, Steph and I are kind of taking some time apart. I'm staying here for a bit until we can work things out. I'm sure she will be here soon though." Kurt explained giving his best attempt at an optimistic smile.

"Well whatever is going on between you too, I hope it has nothing to do with her ex. I told you before, don't let that loser come between you and my sister. You guys are stronger than that."

"That's what I told him." Vince added.

"Well it's a lot of things, not just Levesque. The arrest this week didn't help matters either. I miss her and the kids, and it has only been one full day since I've seen them." Angle admitted folding his arms while a bit awkward talking about the situation with yet another member of his wife's family.

"Let's stop talking about depressing shit. This is my party, and I'll be damned if my whole complete family won't be here to celebrate it with me. When Steph gets here, she'll have no choice but to be part of the family, and this family includes Kurt." Mr. McMahon interjected completely cutting the conversation about the Angle marital problems off. He then followed his words up with a swift pat to the back of his son-in-law.

"All right, well, can I ask what he plans on doing during his time away from WWE?" Shane asked.

"I think I'm going to finally try my hand at MMA." Angle replied back with a smile. He knew that his brother-in-law would appreciate his ambition.

"Nice, but I'm sure my sister will be anything but thrilled. Still though, I really envy you. It's got to be nice to have a break from the company to pursue other interests while spending time with the kids." Shane O' Mac answered back.

When she entered the kitchen, Marissa McMahon was doing everything she could to help her mother-in-law, Linda, with the preparation of the hors d'oeuvres for the party. Declan and his younger brother, Kenyon, were running around the large kitchen playing a game of tag that would cause Linda to look up from her cooking and smile. She loved the sights and sounds of having her grandchildren in her home. For the first few minutes, the two women engaged in small talk, mostly about Shane and Marissa's two boys, but when the casual conversation was spent, Marissa dared to ask aloud what Linda's take was on the Kurt and Stephanie situation.

"So Kurt's been staying with you and Dad ever since he and Steph had a fight after his arrest?" Marissa asked, making sure she was getting an accurate picture of it all.

"Yes, he has. Vince was the one who offered him a guest room. I've been so busy at the office lately, I don't know much about it. I'm sure he made sure Stephanie was okay with it first though. Maybe he was able to talk to her more about her marital problems than I was, because she absolutely refused to talk to me about it." Linda explained to her daughter-in-law.

"Well Steph always has been Daddy's little girl, I don't think anyone could dispute that." Marissa commented with a smile. She and Shane had grown up together as neighbors, so it was safe to say that she had been around Steph since she was a young girl. She knew how fond Stephanie was of her father.

Stephanie's tan Porsche Cayenne pulled up right behind her brother's luxury automobile before coming to a stop. Only a few seconds later, she shut off the engine and then proceeded to first get her daughter out of the car. She was wearing her long straight hair down. Her luxurious brown locks flowed over her sleeveless powdered blue shirt.

"We at Granny and Pop's house!" Aurora exclaimed while skipping over to the other side of the cross over where her mommy was getting the baby out of his car seat. The three year old was sporting a cute pink sundress with matching sandals.

"We sure are. Do you want to carry Pop's present?" Steph asked bringing her one year old to her hip before she closed the car door. Baby Andrew was dressed in a dark blue cotton polo and matching capris and sandals.

"Yeah!" Aurora exclaimed as she followed her mother to the back of the Porsche where Stephanie was retrieving the gift bag that was accented with green tissue paper coming from the top of it.

The three year old ran ahead to the front door, swinging her grandfather's present as she ran, as Stephanie brought up the rear carrying Andy. When Steph and the kids were both on the front porch, Aurora Rose strained, reaching up on her tip toes to ring the doorbell.

"Hey, we were wondering when you three would get here! Come on in!" Linda said with enthusiasm to her family as she waved them into the home.

"Look Granny, a present for Pop!" Aurora voiced with excitement, holding up the bag for her grandmother to see right after she received a hug.

"Oh, I'm sure he's going to love whatever you, Mommy, and Andrew got him." Mrs. McMahon replied before giving her only granddaughter another hug and then a kiss on the cheek.

"Sorry we're a little late, Mom. It's a lot harder getting yourself and two children ready without any help." Steph explained giving her mother a hug.

"Oh, don't worry about it, you haven't missed anything. Now, let me see my little grandbaby. Come here you little munchkin."

Linda was standing there with her arms extended out for baby Andrew. The one year old let out a laugh and hid his eyes in his mother's chest for just a few seconds. Then, he slowly reached out for his granny.

"Oh, I swear, every time I see him he looks like he has grown. You're so handsome, yes you are." Granny said sweetly giving her grandbaby affection.

Marissa then came to the vestibule to greet her sister-in-law and her niece and nephew. With her came her sons to see their aunt and cousins. This prompted Steph to set her one year old down on his feet so that he and his sister could interact with their cousins.

"Where's Dad?" Steph asked moving further into the foyer as Marissa and her mother followed.

"He's in the great room last time I checked." Marissa commented.

Andy saw his mother walking away when he immediately proceeded to whine and toddle after her compelling the three women to turn back around. Before Steph could even react to her son, her mother walked over and scooped up the child.

"Do you want to come and see Grandpa? Come on, sweetheart." Linda gushed affectionately as she walked with her daughter and daughter-in-law down the hallway leading to the great room.

"I wanna say 'happy birfday to Pop too!" Aurora called after them as she ran to catch up.

The three women continued to chat as they walked into the great room. It was baby Andrew who's set of eyes were first to fall upon the three men standing together chatting.

"Dadada da!" Andy bellowed pointing his finger toward his father .

The one year old caused Steph to stop chatting with her brother's wife. She narrowed her eyes and then looked in the direction her son was smiling and pointing. Her blue eyes then widened when she saw that it was indeed her husband standing with her father and brother across the room.

"Kurt! Kurt! Kurt!" Aurora exclaimed running across the room to give her stepfather a big hug. Despite him being Andy's daddy, the three year old was very fond of the man who had taken the place of her daddy for a full year.

"Hey, little girl, how have you been? Are you taking good care of Mommy and Andy? I missed you guys yesterday." Angle replied while hugging his stepdaughter. His eyes were focused on his wife to see her reaction to his presence. When he broke the embrace with Aurora, she quickly ran and gave hugs to Pop and Uncle Shane.

Steph shook her head before folding her arms. She was looking right at Kurt with the best look of disdain that she could muster. While at the same time, Linda set Andy on his feet. The one year old immediately began to toddle across the room toward his daddy.

"There's my big boy. Look at you walking to Daddy. Come here, buddy." Angle gushed with pride as he knelt down and extended his arms out to his approaching child.

"It appears that he missed his daddy." Marissa commented with a smile as she watched Kurt pick up his son the moment he reached him.

The last person that Stephanie expected to see at the McMahon estate was her husband. She had assumed that he had taken up residence in a hotel or had gone to Tennessee to try and see his two older children. Why was he a guest at her father's 64th birthday party? And more importantly, why didn't she know that he was going to be there? Why didn't her mother or father tell her? She had a right to know what she was walking into.

"Did you invite Kurt to the party?" Stephanie asked her mother in a blunt dull tone of voice that was anything but cheerful.

Her reaction to seeing her spouse caused Marissa and Linda to both glance over at each other before anyone dared to reply to her inquiry.

"Kurt's been staying here the past two days. It was your father who extended the invitation. I thought you knew about it." Mrs. McMahon explained showing her surprise.

"No, I didn't! Why on earth would I want him here if we're separated?" Steph asked exasperated with the whole situation.

Angle, with their son still in his arms, started to move forward like he wanted to approach his wife, but Vince stopped him and walked on in his place.

"Hey, calm down, this is my party, damn it! I wanted him here! He's family! Now the two of you need to get the hell over the shit you've been fighting about so we can have a nice family gathering!" McMahon commanded with rigor. His hollering caused Aurora to run to her grandmother for comfort.

"Vince, you need to calm down. You had no right to get in the middle of Kurt and Stephanie's problems. You are scaring the children." Linda told her husband in a calm voice that was still quite assertive.

"We were having a nice time until she decided to cop an attitude because I extended a helping fatherly hand to my son-in-law when he was thrown out of his own house by her!" Mr. McMahon hollered back while pointing a finger right at his own daughter.

"You know what, Dad? You can have your family gathering with your son-in-law but my children and I are leaving!" Steph screamed back in her father's face before she grabbed her daughter from her mother and then stormed across the room to her estranged husband who was still holding their son.

"Steph, I-" Kurt attempted to say as he allowed her to take their baby from his arms.

"Shut up, Kurt!" She snapped back at him and then began to stomp back over to the entrance to the great room with both her kids in her arms.

"Stephanie, don't be this way, come on now! Why don't the two of you just go outside or into another room and calmly talk things out!" Vince suggested, calling after his daughter as she began walking down the hallway. His words caused her to whip around to face him.

"Who's side are you on, Dad? If my maiden name wasn't McMahon, I would swear that Kurt is your son, and I was the in-law!" She yelled back causing both her father and her husband to move to approach her.

"Don't try and stop me!" She added turning around and continuing to walk down the hall.

"Steph, I don't want you to leave your father's party. The last thing I wanted to do was upset you and the kids. I love you guys. I'll go, okay?" Angle pleaded while in pursuit of her.

His words caused Stephanie to halt her stride in the foyer. She turned to face him. Her eyes were sparkling with tears of anger and frustration. Angle felt terrible seeing his wife's negative reaction to him being there. While he loved being able to see the children and be with the rest of his wife's family, it wasn't worth the hurt he felt seeing his wife so adamantly pulling away from him.

"Then go, now!" She answered back with a sneer as she adjusted her grip on her two kids that were still in her arms.

His wife's firm insistence of his departure caused tears to form in Angle's eyes. He felt the sadness overwhelm him and all he could do was nod to show his acceptance of her demand. He grabbed hold of the banister that was attached to the grand staircase. Slowly, he approached the steps.

"Just got to grab my stuff." He muttered as he made his ascent up the steps to the second floor.

Steph glared up at him with eyes that would surely kill if they could. And then, when her husband was out of sight, she shifted those same eyes to her father who was standing with her in the foyer. He was staring back at his daughter with a look of disapproval, but he didn't say another word. In fact, there was an awkward silence in the spacious mansion. No one could be heard, not even the children. Perhaps, everyone was still reeling because of the turn of events.

Stephanie stood there at the bottom of the stairs for the few minutes it took before her husband reemerged with his duffle bag in his hand. Her wide unforgiving eyes followed him down the stairs. Angle stopped for a moment as he stood right in front of his wife and son. He looked like he wanted to say something, maybe to say goodbye to his one year old or plead with her to let him stay with them, but he said nothing. Instead, he opened the front door, walked through it, and then closed it gently behind him. The sound of the front door shutting closed signaled the loud strong cry of baby Andrew as he leaned himself out toward the front door where his daddy had exited.

"I hope you're happy now." Vince hissed in with contempt before he turned his back on his own daughter, and left her by herself with her kids in the vestibule. As he saw it, his party had been spoiled by his daughter's stubbornness.


	51. Chapter 51

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-One

The master bathroom was dark, except for the tranquil illumination of a few scented candles that lined the large corner bathtub. Stephanie's left palm pierced through the stream of water running into her bath so that she was able to gauge its temperature while her right hand controlled the knobs on either side of the faucet. Satisfied with the degree of warmth, she emptied two caps full of aroma bubble bath. With both hands, she gathered up her long hair, twisting it into a neat bun on top of her head, and held it in a place with a clip.

At eight o'clock in the evening, it was her first opportunity to have some quiet time just by herself. She had left her father's party not long after her husband had earlier in the day. There was no way she could stay and celebrate the day of her father's birth after how he had went behind her back and got in the middle of her problems with Kurt.

Her mother had been understanding about her premature departure. Linda too had been blindsided by the fact that Stephanie had not even been consulted about Angle staying at the McMahon estate. While Mrs. McMahon would have loved Steph and the children to be a part of the family festivities, she knew how awkward it would be for her daughter after how Vince had behaved.

Aurora was the one who was upset by the course of actions of the day. She didn't understand why everyone was so upset, why Kurt had to leave abruptly, and then why her, Mommy, and Andrew had to then leave the party. The only excuse that seemed to be appropriate was that Mommy wasn't feeling well. This, after all, wasn't a lie. There had been an unrelenting tight knot in the pit of Stephanie's stomach ever since the events of the party. She couldn't let it bother her though. Steph had to keep on a happy face for her children. The rest of the afternoon had been filled with taking care of their needs. Now, finally with both the three and one year old fast asleep, she could remove that tiresome mask of happy stability, and let her feelings of frustration and sadness spill out.

After she disrobed, Stephanie gingerly stepped into the tub. She allowed her sensitive skin to become accustomed to the hot bath, while slowly sitting down into the water. Steph sighed as her lower body disappeared beneath the bubbles. As she felt the tears begin to form in her eyes, she closed them, and then breathed in deep. The scent of lavender provided a comforting atmosphere. She let out a soft whimper of sadness, bringing both her hands to her stomach and abdomen where her feeling of nausea, and her tiny unborn child resided. She hoped to God that this drama, that first her husband and now her father, wasn't going to cause a relapse of constant vomiting. That was the last thing she needed. Did her husband and father even stop to think about that? Did they think of how their behavior would affect her in her delicate state, which Kurt himself had put her in to begin with? No, they weren't thinking about her unborn baby at all, because they were too busy thinking about themselves.

"It will be okay..." She assured herself in a whisper.

Steph was going to get through it; with or without the support of her husband and father. She was a great mother and a productive businesswoman. All she needed to do was concentrate on doing both in an effective manner. But how she would do that was the question that kept resurfacing in her mind. Stephanie knew that getting back to her job at WWE headquarters in Stamford would help her get back on track, but who would be there to watch her children during the week? She couldn't burden her mother, since Linda was a career woman herself, and it was safe to say that her husband wasn't coming back home anytime soon.

She could always hire a nanny. Kurt had even suggested the idea to her a month or so ago but at the time, she was quick to dismiss it. The idea of some stranger taking care of her two children all week long wasn't all that appealing to her. A month ago, however, she was able to casually reject the suggestion because she still had Angle there to watch the kids when he was home during the week. Now she had no other choice, she was going to have to look at herself like she was a single mother of two. Stephanie was going to call an agency and start setting up interviews on Monday. The sooner she could get back to work, the sooner she could start feeling like her old herself.

* * *

Paul smiled, making his way down the hallway located behind the black curtain that separated the backstage area from the gymnasium where the house show was taking place. His hair was darkened because it was still damp; his torso glistened from a mix of baby oil and perspiration. The crowd was still cheering after the conclusion of his and Edge's one on one match. Levesque had kept his word and gave his all to entertain the two hundred or so fans that were piled into the athletics center in Valparaiso Indiana. As usual, it was slated for Triple H to lose on the white board, but that didn't mean that Hunter didn't give a good fight. Even though The Game was no longer on top of the WWE mountain, Paul still enjoyed his ring work.

"Good match." Adam Copeland muttered as he walked passed Levesque in the hallway at a quicker pace. He had taken his time leaving the ring since he was celebrating his victory.

Paul said nothing in reply, while he began removing the white tape from his fingers. Just because he was willing to put on a good match with the guy, didn't mean that he had to be social with him. The Rated R superstar was, after all, one of Angle's friends. Maybe that's why McMahon and the writers pitted them up against each other for the house show. They never missed an opportunity to inconvenience him or make things awkward.

Levesque made his way into the rather small room that had been designated as the male dressing room. Because of the rather cramped space, he was determined to get in there, change out of his ring gear, and replace it with his casual clothing, not speaking to any of the boys who were happy just hanging out in there. It was definitely a break from his normal post match routine of getting a shower before changing into his clothing. He promised himself that he would do so at his hotel. After packing up his gear, he removed his cell phone, and opened a blank text message box that was addressed to his ex wife and began to thumb the keys to type out his message:

"Hey, I hope u and Aurora r having a good weekend."

He then paused for a moment, wondering if he should add anything else to the message like how much he missed the both of them. Levesque sighed, deciding to leave the message as it was, and then pushed the send button on his phone. Paul wasn't expecting a prompt reply, it was after all pretty late. What was important to him was that she would eventually receive the message from him that illustrated that he cared.

Satisfied with his action, he placed the phone back into his black duffle bag, and then brought the piece of luggage to his shoulder before exiting the dressing room. As Paul walked in the direction of the exit, he passed by a alcove in the hallway where a few SmackDown divas were huddled up together chatting. While he saw them out of the corner of his eye, he didn't bother giving any of them the time of day. But that didn't mean that they didn't take note of him.

"Go ahead, Michelle, ask him." Maryse whispered in McCool's ear, encouraging her to call after Levesque.

"Hey Paul?" Michelle called out after him just before he turned the corner toward the exit.

His name being called out made him stop and turn back around to face the divas. Paul rolled his eyes and waited to find out what it was that the young women wanted. He hoped it was something that would be quick so that he could get to his hotel before the next hour.

"Have you seen or talked to Stephanie lately?" McCool asked.

"Yeah, why? What's it to you?" He questioned back holding his muscular arms in front of his chest. He was a little annoyed by the random inquiry about his former wife.

Maryse and the other divas all looked at Michelle, as a silent way of wanting her to continue her line of questioning.

"Well, we were wondering if there was any truth to the progressing rumor floating around in the company." She then explained.

"What are we talking about here?" Paul then asked in an agitated voice while shrugging his shoulders. He wished that the gossiping bitches would just get to the point.

"You mean you haven't heard about Candice's news that goes along with what the girls on RAW are saying?"

"Just fucking spit it out." He growled back with impatience.

"Well, Candice confided to some of the girls that she's pregnant, and there's been a rumor going around that she's having an affair with Kurt. Is Stephanie doing okay? Are she and Kurt having any problems that you know of?"

Levesque's immediate response to what he heard was a scoff. While he had been the one to plant it in Candice's head that Angle was interested in her, the rumor about them had seem to take on a life of its own. With Kurt's track record, it was very possible that Angle had acted on Candice showing interest in him. The latest development about the diva being pregnant was quite a turn of events. It was then that Paul began to wonder if all of this had something to do with all the fighting between the Angles that his three year old had told him about.

"What makes you think that I give a shit about their problems?" He muttered in reply before he turned back around to begin walking.

"So you have no idea if it's possible that Angle is the father of Candice's baby?" Maryse then asked before Paul had a chance to turn the corner. The women were obviously desperate to get any juicy details on the possible scandalous affair.

"It wouldn't be first time that he impregnated a married woman." Levesque quickly answered back in what was definitely a knee jerk response to the question that was somewhat rash but truthful.

His comment caused the divas to begin to whisper to each other back and forth. Paul took the opportunity to finally round the corner to exit the building. He didn't want to give them a chance to expound upon his comment with a whole other series of questioning.

* * *

Kurt arrived in Alexandra Minnesota just before midnight. Reaching out to his friend, Brock, Angle had been extended an invitation to come stay at Lesnar's lavish country estate until things could blow over with the missus.

He was exhausted from his journey out to the Midwest. While he had flown there, there was a considerable waiting time at the airport for an available flight, and he even had a connecting flight at Chicago's O'Hare that was a three hour layover. A airport taxi drove him up the dirt road to the sprawling property that the Lesnar's home was built on. He couldn't wait to crash.

"I really appreciate this, bro." Kurt told his friend, giving him a quick hug the moment after Brock gave him access to the home through the front door.

"Don't worry about it, just keep it down, Rena and the baby are asleep upstairs." Lesnar instructed in a quiet whisper after closing the door behind his friend.

"I hope Rena was okay with me staying here for a little bit. I don't want you getting in trouble with the wife too." Angle then whispered as Brock lead him in the direction of the staircase.

"Nah, she was fine with it. With you and Steph having us over for dinner just a few weeks ago, she figured it would be a way to return the favor. Besides, we've got plenty of guest rooms." Brock explained as he and Kurt crept up the stairs while trying to make as little noise as possible.

"I appreciate it. Any room would be fine. I'm exhausted."

As the two men reached the second floor, all talk ceased until Lesnar led his friend into one of the spacious guest rooms and flipped on the light. The room had somewhat of a rustic decor that definitely matched the area in which the home was located. It was no secret that Brock liked his privacy away from the glare of the media. He loved the isolation of his property, and while he wasn't training for a fight, he was out fishing and hunting.

"Thanks again, man." Kurt said aloud again.

He set his duffle bag on the suitcase rack which looked to have legs made out of some sort of animal bone and weathered leather straps.

"No problem, just try and rest up. I'll show you the property, that I call my domain, tomorrow." Lesnar promised before leaving his friend to settle in for the night.

Once he was left alone in the bedroom, Angle immediately began undressing down to his briefs. He casually tossed his clothing onto the nearby dresser, not caring to fold it. He paused for a moment to gaze at his own reflection in the dresser mirror. He scratched his salt and pepper beard stubbles while looking at his blue wide eyes that were bloodshot from his fatigue. Angle could only hope that spending some time out in the country could help him refocus getting his life back on track. At the same time, he hoped that his extended absence from Stephanie would better her attitude toward him. After all, didn't the famous saying go: absence makes the heart grow fonder? He hoped so.

When he was finally through wrestling with his thoughts for the night, Kurt traveled back across the room and flipped the light switch, making the darkness of the night fill the bedroom. He then made his way over to the bed. After pulling back the bed sheets, he slipped into the king size bed. The moment his head hit the pillow, all his muscles finally relaxed, and he was out.


	52. Chapter 52

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-Two

Kurt had to remind himself where he was the moment he opened his eyes to find himself in the Lesnars' guest room. It wasn't that he had forgotten the events of the previous day, it was just that he wasn't used to waking up in a king sized bed that wasn't his and without his wife beside him. This is something he was going to have to get used to. Who knew how long he was going to be in Dutch with the wife?

Not wanting to be considered a lazy guest, Angle quickly got up, took a shower, and changed into a pair of comfortable running shorts, and one of his many MMA t-shirts. Rena graciously fixed both her husband and Kurt a hearty breakfast of eggs, bacon, and sausage before she even sat down to feed herself and the baby. Neither Brock or Rena even brought up the fact that they only knew that the Angles were on the outs. They didn't know why, and they didn't ask.

The Lesnars' morning routine was normal; it reminded Angle of breakfast at his home with Stephanie. The former Mrs. Mero was the caring wife who made sure everyone was taken care of, just like Steph did. Baby Turk, who was the same age as Kurt and Stephanie's son, Andrew, reminded Kurt of his child who he hated to be away from.

After breakfast was finished, Brock gave his friend the grand tour of his sprawling property. While Kurt never considered himself an outdoorsman like Brock, he could really appreciate the serenity that being out in the sticks gave the family.

"So what do you think of the land?" Lesnar asked while he and Angle walked the dirt path from the woods.

"It's a great chunk of land you've got here. You must love it; hunting and fishing in your own backyard." Kurt commented following Brock as led him down to the lake.

"Yeah, this is how I grew up. I wouldn't live anywhere else. I get to hunt my meat, catch my fish. This is the life, I'm telling you." Lesnar proclaimed proudly while stopping at the railing of his small dock.

"Yeah, maybe for you man. I think I'd end up going stir crazy if I lived here year round, me and Steph both." replied Angle as he too leaned on the same railing and focused his eyes at the pontoon and a few other boats that were tied to the dock.

"Speaking of the wife, you want to talk about what went down? It had to be pretty bad for her to throw you out on your ass." Lesnar inquired, finally asking the question that he and his wife had been wondering since Kurt's arrival in Minnesota.

Angle let out a sigh and brought his hand up to his head to scratched his scalp. While he could give a lengthy recall of all of the drama between himself and Steph from the past few days, he didn't feel like doing it. He had been all through this with Vince, and that had only caused more problems than it did help him. Sure Lesnar was one of his best friends, but having to re-account for all the hurtful things said between him and Steph, would just be like picking at a deep wound that was trying to heal. He had come to stay with his friend because his mind needed solace, and he wanted Brock to help him get a leg up in the MMA world.

"Eh, I don't really feel like going into it, man. How are things with you and Rena? You got yourself a nice boy. I bet you can't wait to take him hunting and fishing, huh?"

Kurt finally broke the awkward silence and was immediately changing the subject onto Brock and his family.

"Yeah, we're doing great. We just found out that Rena's already pregnant again. Don't let on that I told you, she's wanting to keep it quiet for the first few months, you know how women are. I'm hoping for another boy." Brock divulged with a smile.

"Well that's something we've got in common then, because Steph just found out that's she's pregnant again too. She's been the same way as Rena, because she has been having some really bad morning sickness."

"Well, shit, congrats to us both then! Both our boys are barely walking and we've already got more buns in the oven! We're fucking studs!" Lesnar exclaimed with a laugh as he then gave his friend a swift slap on the back.

While Angle was quick to laugh along with his friend's comments, he couldn't help but feel a bit of sadness thinking about the pregnancy. Brock was the lucky one. He was going to be there for Rena during her entire pregnancy. This was something Kurt was already missing out on at that very moment. He hated it.

"I hate the fact that we're separated. I swore that I'd be there with her through the entire pregnancy with the next child we had, since I wasn't there for most of her pregnancy with Andrew." Angle confessed aloud suddenly turning the conversation to one of sincerity.

"I'm sure it will blow over. I'll give it a week, two weeks tops, before she's calling you begging for you to come home to be with her and the kids. And I'll tell you what, man, make up sex is the best sex there is." Lesnar chuckled not bothering to give any weight to his friend's concerns.

"I'm glad you're so optimistic. I worry more about her ex-husband trying to make a move on her while I'm out of the picture. You know he plays that "I'm your daughter's father" card to the hilt." Kurt mentioned letting his thoughts come spilling out.

"Fuck him, that guy's such a douche bag. Besides, do you really think she'll let him tap that while she's carrying your kid? It's real simple, if Steph is worthy of being your wife and bearer of your children, then you have nothing to worry about. If not, then fuck her, divorce her ass." Brock told his pal bluntly.

"That's really easy for you to say. I love her, Brock, I just can't turn my feelings for her off. The thought of her even being with someone else while I'm gone just drives me crazy. I don't know what I'd do if I lost her. What would you do if you were in my position and it was Rena?" Kurt answered back with a question, his voice was full of desperation.

"I'd be manning up and taking the separation as a chance for me to focus on stuff I want to do. She's the woman, let her sit at home watching those Lifetime movies and crying into her pillow. You're the man, grow a set. She was holding you back from doing MMA. So take this separation as an opportunity to do it. I can pull some strings and get you in to do a physical next week. You just need to pull your tampon out and be the man that I know you are. You're Kurt fucking Angle, don't ever forget that." Lesnar preached while giving his friend a few stiff punches to the arm to drive home his points.

As much as Kurt didn't want to admit it, Brock did have a point. Why should he have to be the one that was miserable while Stephanie was happy to have him out of the house? She wanted space, so he should do just that. He was half way across the country, enjoying some time with one of his best friend's. Lesnar was right: this was the perfect time for him to man up and give mixed martial arts his all.

* * *

From Sunday into Monday, Stephanie's main priority was setting up her family profile on the Connecticut Nanny agency website. It was a simple process of filling out her family information: her name, Kurt's, and the names and ages of her children. When it came to salary, Steph was more than willing to be competitive. She would be willing to pay a very fair wage for whoever took the position. This woman would be taking care of her two babies, so of course, she wanted to pay her generously and with benefits.

Thanks to her enticing profile that she posted on Sunday, there were more than a dozen applicants applying for the position by Monday morning. She began the task of weeding out the women that she didn't care for. Perhaps she was being too picky, because Steph found herself saying no to the majority of the applicants. And just when she began to wonder if she would find anyone that would be up to her nanny standards, she came across one lady that stood out and was available right away.

"So you have the address, the house can be a little hard to find because it's off of a back road...Yeah, you have my number just in case you have trouble getting here...Okay, great, thank you, see you soon, bye..."

Aurora approached her mommy in the kitchen while she was finishing up a phone call. She was curious to know who her mother was speaking to. Maybe it was her daddy and he was going to be coming over to play with her or take her back to the park.

"Who that, Mommy?" The three year old asked as she pointed up at the cordless phone that was still in her mother's hand.

"That was a lady who is coming here this afternoon to meet us. Mommy is ready to go back to work and if we like this lady, she will be our nanny." Steph told her daughter setting the phone back into its dock.

"What a nanny?"

"A nanny is a person who Mommy hires to come to our house and watch you and baby Andrew while I work during the day." Stephanie then explained.

"No need a nanny. Daddy can watch me and when Kurt come back from busy-ness, he can watch the baby when you at work." Aurora Rose suggested coming up with what she thought was a far better plan than her mother's.

"Both Kurt and your daddy are busy during the week just like me. This nanny is someone who can be there to take care of you and your brother on a consistent basis. She's coming over this afternoon to meet us."

"What if she not nice? What if she scary?" The three year old then asked her mother in a voice that had a hint of fear.

Steph felt her heart melt after hearing her little girl's concerns. She squatted down so that she would be at her daughter's eye level before she answered her questions.

"I would never ever leave you and Andy with someone who wasn't nice to you. Let's just meet her and get to know her, and then after, you can tell me if you like her, okay?" Steph asked her child, looking directly into her daughter's eyes.

Aurora Rose simply nodded before her mother pulled her in for a hug. It was so important to Stephanie that her little girl knew that she wasn't just going to leave her and Andrew with just anyone. The Connecticut agency that Steph was going through had an impeccable reputation for placing well qualified childcare providers with families that needed their services. The applicant Steph had selected, Catherine Scot, was not only CPR certified, but had had many previous years of experience as a nanny.

Being the quintessential businesswoman, Stephanie had already prepared an outline for her interview with the potential nanny. She had formulated each and every question she would ask with the intent of learning as much as she could about Ms. Scot's history as a nanny. Steph was also anxious to see how both her children behaved toward her.

"That must be her." Stephanie commented aloud the moment after the door bell echoed through the spacious home.

Aurora looked a bit apprehensive as she watched her mother pick up baby Andrew before moving to answer the door. At first, the three year old was sure she was going to stay put in the living room, but then, not even ten seconds after her mommy had left the room, she quickly got off the couch and ran after her mother. When Aurora Rose entered the vestibule, she was just in time to see her mother opening the front door to let the visitor inside.

"Hello, please come in!" Steph welcomed the older lady in a friendly tone of voice that she hoped sounded inviting.

"Mrs. Angle, I presume?" Ms. Scot asked stepping through the threshold.

"Yes, but please, call me Steph." Stephanie answered back offering a polite handshake and a smile.

"Pleasure to meet you, Steph. I'm Catherine, but feel free to call me Cathy." She added accepting the handshake.

Catherine Scot immediately reminded Aurora of her granny Linda. She was probably someone's grandmother too. She had short blonde and gray hair and some wrinkles on her face. Ms. Scot was dressed in a light cotton shirt and pants that looked both comfortable and appropriate for an interview. Cathy looked very well put together like many of the seniors of Greenwich Connecticut.

"You have a beautiful home, oh, and this gorgeous little girl and handsome baby boy must be your two angels." Catherine pointed out with a warm smile of her own.

The prospective nanny's words caused Aurora to get a case of shyness. She quickly sought refuge by grabbing hold of her mother's leg and hiding her face. Aurora Rose wanted her mommy to do all the talking.

"Thank you, yes they are. This little man in my arms is Andrew Vincent. He's a year old and the little girl who is being shy is Aurora Rose who is three." Steph answered in return. She then reached behind her with her free hand and patted Aurora on the back as a way to tell her that there was no need to be shy.

"It's very nice to meet you, Aurora." Ms. Scot commented in a nice voice after she bent down to speak to the child on her level.

"Aurora, say hello to our guest." Stephanie instructed her child. It was important that she taught her daughter to have manners, even though she knew she was shy.

"It's okay, you don't have to talk to me until you're ready to, sweetheart." Said Cathy with a chuckle before she then arose back to a standing position.

"She'll warm up after a little while, then you won't be able to stop her from talking." Steph chuckled brushing the back of her daughter's head.

"Are you going to be shy too, you little munchkin? Huh? Are you a shy baby?" Ms. Scot gushed, making over Andy who had been staring at her from where he sat on his mother's hip.

Cathy's words caused the baby to hide his face into his mommy's chest for a few seconds before he then reached out toward the nanny.

Stephanie allowed the older woman to take her son. She was a bit surprised that Catherine was able to win the one year old over so quickly. Andrew was usually like his older sister in that he would only want to be held by members of his family. Ms. Scot seemed to be great with children.

"Oh, you are just a precious little cherub." Cathy continued the moment she was holding the baby in her arms.

"Hold me now, Mommy!" Aurora Rose demanded in a whine the moment she realized that her mother was no longer holding Andrew.

Without hesitation, Steph bent down and lifted her three year old up into her arms. The three year old nuzzled up close to her mother while looking over at the baby in the nanny's arms. Maybe Cathy could keep baby Andrew for herself since she liked him so much, Aurora thought.

"Shall we go sit down and talk? I have a few questions I'd like to ask, and I'm sure you have your own questions for me." Steph offered .

"Yes, of course, lead the way." Replied Ms. Scot following Stephanie as she left the foyer en route to the kitchen.

"I wanna snacky, pwease." The three year old told her mother the moment they entered the kitchen.

"Okay, sweetie, I'll cut you up an apple." Stephanie told her daughter before she set her down in her boaster seat at the kitchen table.

"Wif peanuts butter on it." The three year old added.

"Cathy, you can put Andy in his high chair, he loves apples as well, I'm going to cut him up one too." Steph instructed while she began to slice up the fruit.

Ms. Scot did as Stephanie said and once the children were served their snacks, the conversation between the two adults commenced.

"You mentioned in your application that you've been a nanny for more than ten years. That's quite a long time. How did you come to be a nanny?" Stephanie asked the moment after she and Cathy sat down at the table.

"I've always loved children. When I was young and just married to my husband, I was devastated to find out that I couldn't have them. I wanted to adopt but my husband was against raising a child that wasn't our own. It was when Larry passed away, that I decided that I wanted to be a nanny. I love the job. I was with one wonderful family for many years, but the children grew up and no longer needed me there." Ms. Scot explained, giving her personal reasons for her career as a caretaker for children.

"I'm sorry to hear that you weren't able to have children."

"Well, I'm thankful that I had the opportunity to take care of the four children that I helped raise. I feel like their my own, I know that sounds strange, but taking care of them since they were small, I became attached."

Stephanie couldn't help but feel empathy for the older woman. She, herself, couldn't possibly imagine not being able to be a mother. The fact that Ms. Scot was so forthcoming with such personal information was commendable. Cathy had references from the last family she worked with praising her abilities as a nanny. She must have been good if they kept her on for so many years, and she really seemed to take her job as a nanny to heart.

"I'm assuming that you live locally. I would need you to be here Monday through Friday from eight to eight each day. I won't need you on the weekends."

"That's not a problem. The position was listed as full time. I live about fifteen minutes away so it won't be a problem for me to get here by eight in the morning. And it's no problem if you have to work late, but you will need to call me and let me know."

"Oh, of course, I would call you. Can you cook? I plan on feeding the kids breakfast before I go to work and you would just need to give them lunch and dinner. I try and keep Aurora on a healthy variety of food."

"I have no problem cooking or doing a little light housework. For discipline, I'm a big believer in time out. My rule of thumb is whatever the age of the child is, he or she gets that number of years in minutes."

"That sounds fair, and you will not have to worry about cleaning. I have a cleaning service that comes in while I'm at work and straightens up." Stephanie explained getting up so that she could help Aurora out of her boaster seat.

"What about Aurora and Andrew's father? You mentioned on your profile that he is a wrestler for your company, is he home often?" Cathy asked out of curiosity. She found it a little strange that Mrs. Angle listed on her profile that she was married yet she wasn't wearing a wedding ring.

Steph paused for a moment, waiting for her three year old to run back into the living room before she even began to answer the nanny's personal question about Kurt. After all, Aurora was still under the impression that her stepfather was still away on business.

"My husband, Kurt, is Andrew's father. Aurora is my child from my previous marriage to professional wrestler, Paul Levesque who is known as Triple H. Kurt and I are kind of going through a trial separation. We told Aurora that he is on business. I don't want the children's lives to be uprooted because my husband and I are trying to work things out." Stephanie divulged in a low voice so that she would not be heard by her child in the living room.

"Oh, I see."

It was all Cathy said in reply. It was obvious that she was a little uneasy about the idea that the three year old believed her stepfather was away on business when it reality, he and his wife were in the midst of a trial separation. She wondered how long Mr. and Mrs. Angle were going to keep the business trip charade up before telling the child the truth. Cathy hoped that the two of them would reconcile before that happened. The children were absolutely beautiful and deserved to have a complete family.

With the most important questions out of the way, Steph then began to give Ms. Scot the grand tour of the Angle home. She deposited baby Andrew from his highchair to his playpen. They then started in the kitchen where Stephanie showed her around so that she would be able to cook with ease, then she walked her through the rest of the downstairs.

"Wow, your husband, Kurt, is certainly accomplished. Are all those awards his?" Catherine asked in amazement as she popped her head into Angle's trophy room.

"Yes, those are his amateur trophies, medals, and plaques. He won the 1996 gold medal in freestyle wrestling among other world championships during his amateur career. I warn you not to ask him about any of it unless you want an hour long monologue." Steph warned with a chuckle before she led on to the stairs.

Upstairs, Stephanie didn't bother even mentioning the vacant guest rooms, and went straight to pointing out Aurora's room followed by the nursery that was right next to the master bedroom. It was when she was showing Cathy around Andrew's nursery that she decided to let her in on her secret.

"I'm telling you about this, because I want to hire you to come work for us. I actually found out recently that I'm pregnant again. I'm keeping it very hush-hush for right now. Aurora doesn't even know about it. The reason being is that I've had a miscarriage in the past, and I just want to wait until later in the pregnancy before I let people know. Only my husband, and my parents know about it."

"And now me." Cathy chimed in with a smile.

"Yes, and now you. I just thought you needed to know before you accepted the position because in about nine months there will be three children instead of two. I will, of course, go on maternity leave further into the pregnancy." Steph explained further.

"Well congratulations, and I will most certainly keep it to myself until you are ready to let others know. Thank you for entrusting me with the news."

Stephanie couldn't help but smile. She really felt good about Catherine Scot as her new full time nanny for her children. Just from the short time they had spent talking, she already felt like she could entrust her kids with her while Steph went back to work.

"I would love for you to come work with us." said Stephanie with a tone of sincerity while extending her hand toward Ms. Scot.

"So would I. You have a beautiful family." She replied accepting the handshake.

"Mommy, the cell phone ringed!" Aurora Rose announced carrying her mother's blackberry into the nursery.

"It was ringing? Thank you for bringing it to me, sweetheart." Steph replied taking her phone from her daughter so that she could see who was trying to contact her.

"Oh great, it's from work..." She added the minute she looked at her notifications.

"Aurora, why don't we go downstairs and do something fun. Do you like to color?" Cathy asked slowly approaching the child in a gentle manner so that she would not make her nervous.

"Yeah, I color my princess book. I good at making pretty colors and pictures." Aurora answered back quickly with a bit of pride.

And just like that, her shyness and uncertainty about Cathy had melted away. She took Cathy's hand and led her out of the nursery without a single glance back at her mother. The new nanny was a pro. She had to be to be able to win Aurora over so quickly.

"Brian, what's going on? I'm sorry that I missed your call?" Steph said into her cell phone after Brian Gerwitz, the senior vice president of creative, answered.

"Vince is beside himself, Steph. Jeff Hardy was arrested this morning on charges of trafficking controlled prescription pills, and for being in possession of anabolic steroids. You know what this does for our main event at Unforgiven. Hardy is suppose to be the number one contender for Jericho's championship in the main event. With both Kurt and Jeff suspended, Steph, what are we going to do about our PPVs main event?"

"Jesus, I knew it was a mistake to put Hardy in the main event! You were right there when I voted against it! But Kurt and Dad wanted to give him a chance, and now look where that's gotten us!" Steph hollered, showing her frustrations with the turn of events within her company. It was especially upsetting to know that it was something that could have been prevented, if her father and husband had listened to her.

"I know, but your father is pissed. He's called a mandatory emergency meeting in the next hour and he wants you there. I know you' haven't been feeling well lately, but he says you have to be there." Brian told her, simply delivering her father's message.

Stephanie couldn't help but roll her eyes and exhale. Only her father would schedule a one o'clock meeting at corporate before turning right around and jetting across the country for live Monday night RAW. Why the hell did he need her there? Couldn't the creative team manage without her? What did he want her to do, tell him how right she was and how he should have listened to her in the first place?

"All right, I'll be there...Bye."

Steph shook her head a moment after she ended the call. She had just hired a nanny and now she was going to ask her on the day of hire if she could stay and watch her children for a few hours. Stephanie could only hope that Ms. Scot didn't have any plans this afternoon. The alternative was for her to bring Andrew and Aurora with her to corporate, which she really didn't want to do.

"Everything okay?" Cathy asked after seeing the look on Steph's face when she entered the living room.

"We had a bit of a problem at work and my dad called an emergency meeting that I need to go to in the next hour. I know this is short notice, but would it at all be possible for you to watch Aurora and Andrew for three hours tops?" Stephanie asked before tucking her bottom lip into her mouth while she nervously awaited a response from the nanny.

"Of course I will. I didn't have any plans to speak of. You go right ahead and go to your meeting. We'll be just fine." Catherine replied with a smile before turning her attention back to Aurora who was having a merry old time coloring, so much so that she didn't even seem to take notice of the discussion of her mother's departure.

In somewhat of a rush, Steph threw on one of her old standby black business suits, before pulling her hair back in a ponytail. She didn't even bother with makeup since she just planned to sit in on the meeting and then come right back home. Not wanting to cause any unnecessary drama, Stephanie didn't even say goodbye to either of her children. At the time of her departure, Andrew was already down for his afternoon nap, and Aurora was being read a storybook by Cathy. She wasn't about to mess up a good thing by advertising the fact that she was leaving. The Porsche backed out of the garage before traveling down the driveway toward the back road. Stephanie was on her way back to World Wrestling Entertainment headquarters, and she was going back to work sooner than she thought.

* * *

Paul cut his steering wheel sharply to the right causing his large red Hummer to turn into the Angle driveway. He had decided to stop by and check on both Stephanie and Aurora after his weekend away out in the Midwest. He was coming over unannounced and without an invitation. While some would consider that to be rude, Levesque was at the point that he really didn't care. After all, it was quite rude of his ex-wife not to answer his text message that he sent her on Saturday night. It wasn't like her to blatantly ignore him. Was she overwhelmed by the pressure of being on her own with two kids? With Angle being MIA, this was definitely a perfect opportunity to offer a helping hand.

After parking the Hummer in the driveway parallel to the garage, Paul walked the stone pathway that led to the front porch of the home. Before ringing the bell, he quickly ran his hand through the dirty blonde strands of his ponytail. He looked good and he was confident that Steph would notice that.

Paul rang the doorbell before grabbing a white stick of mint gum to put in his mouth. He began to chew the piece while patiently waiting for the front door to open. He was sure that this time he'd be welcomed into the house for a visit.

Levesque's anticipation rose high as the front door began to open. And then, as fast as it had spiked, it fell when he saw that the woman on the other side of the door was not Stephanie, but an older woman who had never seen before in his life. His hazel eyes narrowed and he then attempted to peek inside the home's foyer, thinking that maybe Steph was right inside.

"Can I help you?" Ms. Scot asked closing the gap between herself and the door so that he could no longer peer inside the home.

Levesque felt like he was at a loss of words. His brain was trying to play catch up after a stranger answered the front door instead of Stephanie. Who was she? Was she Angle's mother? That would be like him to send his damn family to keep an eye on Steph while he wasn't there. Paul was looking at her, almost dumbfounded. He needed to say something.

"I'm sorry, but, who are you? Is Stephanie home?" He asked bringing his hand up to his beard to scratch it.

"I'm Catherine Scot, the Angle family's newly hired nanny. Who are you?"

"Steph hired a nanny? She didn't tell me about that. I'm Paul Levesque, her daughter's father. I'm here to see both her and Aurora. Would you mind telling Steph that I'm here, please?" Levesque asked with confidence.

"Nice to meet you, Paul. Stephanie is at the office. Does she know that you were stopping by?"

"Uh no, I was in the neighborhood and I thought I'd come by and see my daughter since I was away all weekend."

"Oh well, Aurora and Andrew are both still taking their nap."

Paul felt his heart sink after being told that not only Stephanie was not there, but his little girl was sleeping. He was sure of what the nanny would say next: She would tell him that she would let both Aurora and Steph know that he stopped by before closing the door in his face.

"You're welcome to come in and wait until Aurora wakes up. I'm sure she will be ecstatic to see her daddy after her nap. She should be done taking a nap soon." Cathy offered slightly stepping aside while opening the door wider to signal that he was allowed to enter.

"Well maybe just a quick visit. I'm pretty tired from the weekend and I have a show tomorrow that I need to rest up for. I just want to say hi to my baby girl real quick. Is she up in her room?" Levesque inquired after stepping foot in the house.

"Yes, both children are upstairs." Catherine confirmed while watching Aurora's father immediately begin to ascend the grand staircase.

Levesque wasn't lying when he mentioned how tired he was. Doing three shows back to back really wiped him out. Perhaps that was McMahon's plan when he gave him such a grueling schedule. All Paul could think about was getting to see his little girl.

As quiet as he could, he crept up the stairs to the second floor. The door to Aurora's room was already open. Inside, he saw his child sleeping in her bed soundly. She looked absolutely angelic sleeping there peacefully like she was without a care in the world. He quickly moved into the room and approached Aurora. Bending down, Paul gently placed his lips on his daughter's little cheek.

"I love you, sweetheart." He whispered in a hushed voice.

The sound of his voice caused Aurora to stir. Her eyes then fluttered open and looked up at him. She brought her hands to her face and then began to scrub both eyes like she was rubbing her sleepiness away to see her father better.

"Daddy, you come stay wif me and Mommy?" Aurora asked aloud before her eyes closed again and she yawned.

Levesque cracked a smile in response to his child's question. He wished with all his heart that he could have answered her with an emphatic yes. Paul wanted to stay with Stephanie and Aurora more than anything in the world. Before he was even able to answer her, he could tell that she had drifted off again to sleep. Perhaps she wasn't yet finished with her nap. He didn't want to further disturb her slumber, so he gave his little girl one last kiss on top of her head before leaving her room.

Leaving his child to sleep in her room of the Angle home, Paul couldn't help but feel a small measure of sadness. He had never wished so hard that Stephanie and Aurora were living with him again. He wanted so much to be able to tell his child that he wasn't going anywhere. To think that he once had both of them as permanent fixtures in his life almost made him feel worse. He had taken his gorgeous wife and beautiful baby daughter for granted once in his life, and now, after he had lost them, he knew he would never make that same mistake again.

"She must be really tired. She woke up to see me and then went right back to sleep." Levesque told the nanny when he saw that she was still waiting for him at the foot of the stairs.

"Well she did a great deal of running around outside today. I took the children out for about a half an hour. Both Aurora and Andrew are such a joy. I told Stephanie, she is truly blessed with such a beautiful family. I hope everything works out for her." Catherine divulged with a kind smile.

Levesque felt a small lump forming in the back of his throat after hearing the nanny's comments about his ex-wife's family; a family that didn't include him anymore. He just wanted to get out of there. He hated standing in Kurt and Stephanie's house while talking to their new nanny about how perfect their family was.

"Yeah...She is. I'm-I'm going to take off. Nice meeting you..." He then muttered as he walked toward the front door.

"It was nice meeting you too, Paul. I will tell Steph that you stopped by to see your daughter." Promised Cathy as she watched him leave.

Paul didn't even reply back to her comment about letting her new boss know about his visit. Would Stephanie even care that he was putting forth effort to be there for their child? She certainly didn't seem to care when she ignored his text message over the weekend. He felt a bit hurt. How hard was it for her to simply reply saying that her and Aurora were both doing fine?

With the acquisition of a nanny, it was clear that Stephanie wasn't overwhelmed with the two children at all. She was back at work; back to business as usual. Was she getting her marriage back on track too? Paul didn't know, all he could do was hope that it wasn't so.


	53. Chapter 53

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-Three

"How nice of you to join us, Stephanie." Vince commented like a true smart ass when he saw his daughter entering the conference room and taking a seat at the other end of the table.

"Sorry I'm late, this meeting came out of nowhere. It would have been nice to have more of a heads up." Stephanie muttered back as she shifted in her chair in an attempt to get comfortable.

Her arrival caused a little bit of a stir amongst the creative team since this was her first appearance back at work since she had been out sick for some time. Some of them were actually taking bets on whether or not she was going to show.

"Anyway, as I was saying before the interruption, Hardy's legal trouble puts us in quite a tough spot. In accordance with our wellness policy, we have no choice but to suspend him which means he is out of our Unforgiven main event. Who are we going to replace him with?" McMahon asked before leaning back in his chair. That was his cue for his writers to come up with suggestions.

"We could always replace him with Jack Swagger. As it stands now, we have nothing for him since his program with Angle fell through with the whole DUI fiasco." One writer pointed out.

"No, Kurt thought he was too green to main event for the title, that's the whole reason he was going to do a feud with him. He was going to help the kid improve. What about Orton and Cena?" Vince replied while rummaging through his notes on the table in front of him.

"We already have plans for them in a singles match right before our main event. It's their blow off match, so I don't think we should remove it in favor of sticking one of them in the main event with Jericho."

"I was thinking more of a triple threat match for the WWE championship: Jericho versus Orton versus Cena. That'd be a match people would pay to watch. I doubt they'd even remember that Hardy was originally suppose to be the number one contender." McMahon chuckled as he scribbled some shorthand down on his yellow tablet.

"But that leaves open a space in the card if we combined the two matches. Why don't we bring Triple H over from SmackDown?" Steph immediately chimed in shooting her father's idea down for one that she thought made more sense.

"Why the hell would we do that?" Vince quickly retorted back with a good amount of venom in his voice. The mere mention of his former son-in-law by his daughter was getting him all riled up.

"Because Vince, Triple H and Chris Jericho would put on a good match. They've done it before when they headlined WrestleMania X-8. Besides, Paul has been putting in a lot of effort for the company lately with all those house shows he did this past weekend. It wouldn't hurt to show him that he's appreciated." Steph remarked.

The back and forth exchange between father and daughter made the creative team feel like they were merely the audience in the stands of a fierce tennis match. Their eyes darted back and forth between Vince and Stephanie as they each had their turn to speak.

"I don't see the long term benefit of moving Triple H to RAW." McMahon snapped back tossing his pen onto the table like a toddler throwing a hissy fit.

"Well, I don't see any benefit in keeping him on SmackDown. He really hasn't had any good programming since he's been there. I know Paul can make it work with Chris. They have a history from past storylines we could draw from to build a feud before Unforgiven."

"That's true, it would be easy for us to build a program around Triple H and Jericho. We also wouldn't have to worry about the match being a dud since their both veterans." Another writer agreed causing a flood of positive reactions siding with Stephanie.

The creative team unanimously siding with Stephanie caused Vince's face to contort into a look of distain. The one thing he hated more than Triple H being brought up in his meeting was being challenged by his own flesh and blood.

"All right, meeting adjourned. I'll see most of you at RAW. Stephanie, stay right where you are, you and I aren't finished talking."

Stephanie felt like a high school student sitting in afterschool detention waiting for the principal to deliver a lecture. She knew it was coming by the nice shade of red her father's face had turned during the meeting. She sat there quietly and watched as each and every member of the creative team filed out of the room in single file. And then, it was just her and her father.

"Just what the hell are you doing bringing up Triple H as a replacement for Hardy? I don't want him on RAW, and I know damn well Kurt doesn't want him there either!" Vince hollered causing his booming voice to echo through the empty room causing Steph's ears to ring.

"First of all, Kurt is suspended from the company for over a month after his DUI arrest, and secondly, with the way you, both of you, have been behaving toward me, I don't give a damn what either of you want. Paul deserves to be back on RAW. Business is business, Vince." Steph said calmly but with a bit of an attitude while raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, that's cute. You kick your husband out of the house and now, all of a sudden, you're looking out for Paul's "best interest". May I remind you what that miserable son of a bitch did to you a little over a year ago?" McMahon fired back getting up from his seat and leaning over the table as he projected his voice across the room toward his daughter.

"I don't need you to remind me, Dad. I lived through it. That's my personal business, not WWE business, and it's in the past. If you want Kurt and I to work it out, then you need to stay the hell out of our marriage. I'm serious, Daddy." Stephanie told her father with her blue eyes wide and sparkling with tears that she was fighting to keep in.

McMahon saw how sincere Steph was being. His mood quickly changed from that of anger to bewilderment. Despite all his flaws as a man, he loved his children; especially his daughter, Stephanie. He really hated seeing her in pain when he knew that she could be happy.

"I know you're a grown woman, and I know that it's your life," Vince began in a voice that was much calmer and more fatherly. "I love you, Steph. I just want what's best for you and my grandbabies. Kurt loves you more than life itself. I was there, I watched him fall to pieces at the thought of losing you. You two are great together. You have a new baby coming, don't throw that away."

Stephanie let out a long sigh and then brought a finger from each hand up to her eye to wipe away the tears that began to escape from her eyes. Her father taking the time to give his personal testimony of the love Kurt Angle had for her was enough to make her emotions spill out. This was exactly what she was trying to avoid. She didn't want to be an emotional wreck about her marital problems. She had to be strong; she was a mother of two and a corporate businesswoman. She was determined to stick to her guns about her husband even as her father continued on:

"And Paul is just trying to take advantage of you, honey. He sees your marital problems as an opportunity for him to try and get close to you again. He wants back into our family, the McMahon circle. He wants Triple H back in the main event with the title. That's the game he plays, remember? Don't support him coming back to RAW, you'll be playing right into his hand." McMahon added warning his daughter about her former husband like he knew it all.

Steph looked away from her father's piercing gaze. A single thought began to bombard her mind relentlessly causing her to entertain the thought. She started thinking about her conversation during Aurora's bath time last Friday night; hearing her little girl's sweet voice recall her daddy asking her details about her mommy's personal life with Kurt. Wait a minute, did her father actually have a point? No, she didn't want to believe that. It would kill her to think that Paul's new found interest for their child was a ruse to win her back.

"You're wrong about Paul. He loves Aurora. I've seen how great he is with her now. He's really making an effort to change."

"And why, Steph? Think about it. Up until recently, where has he been for the past year? Why now this sudden burst of fatherhood after you and Kurt started having problems? Suddenly now he has all the time in the world for you and Aurora?" Vince asked even giving the fake tone of concern to his voice to further drive home his point.

"I'm done listening to this, Dad. I've got to get home to the kids." Steph replied quickly getting up from her seat.

"Well who's watching them?" McMahon asked back quickly before his daughter had a chance to run out of the conference room.

"The new nanny. Her name is Catherine Scot, I just hired her today. She's going to watch them while I'm at the office during the week." Steph explained in a dull voice. She was only humoring her father by answering his questions about his grandchildren. She wanted to get out of there.

"I take it that Kurt would be okay with you hiring a nanny?" Vince then asked cocking his head to the side as he waited for Stephanie to respond.

"I would think so, Dad. It was his idea for me to get one in the first place. Have a safe trip to RAW, give mom my love when you see her tomorrow." Steph muttered back before she finally exited the conference room before her father was able to come back with another comment or question. She had had enough of him for the day.

* * *

"The itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout!" Cathy sang out with a voice full of enthusiasm while sitting on the carpet with Andrew in front of her.

Baby Andy did his best to mimic his nanny's movements. He held his hands in front of him and rubbed them together as it was his best attempt at the spider movement upward that Catherine was doing with her fingers.

"Down came the rain and washed the spider out!" She continued before laughing at the sight of the one year old bringing his hands back down and throwing them outward along with her.

"Out came the sun and dried up all the rain!"

Andrew opened his eyes wide and reached as high as he could with his hands showing his little belly under his shirt while he did his best to mirror his caretaker. This adorable sight caused Cathy to laugh even more.

"And the itsy bitsy spider went up the spout again! Yay for the spider!" She then exclaimed beginning to clap her hands which caused the baby to do the same.

"He not good at playing that game. Mommy tried teachy him. He not do patty cake by his-self eve-er." Aurora mentioned to the nanny from where she sat at her dollhouse. She didn't understand why Cathy was having so much fun playing with the baby.

"He's a smart little guy. I'm sure he'll learn quickly. He's such a little cutie." Catherine gushed before giving a playful poke to the small bit of stomach that was sticking out from under Andrew's shirt. Her finger poke caused him to let out a hearty belly laugh.

"I lots smarter than baby. I'm vis many and he only vis many." Aurora announced holding up her fingers to show three digits and then just one.

"Caffy?" Aurora then called out, wanting to get the nanny's undivided attention before continuing with what she wanted to say.

"Yes, what is it?" Ms. Scott asked with a smile, turning her attention from the giggling baby to the older child that was under her care.

"If you wanna baby a lot you can takey him home wif you. Mommy not mind if you takey him home. She wuvs me." Aurora proposed. She was more than willing to send baby Andrew off with Cathy if it meant that she would get all of Mommy's attention from then on.

"Oh no, I think his mommy and daddy would miss him way too much." Catherine replied back with a chuckle. Children really did say the most adorable things.

Cathy then quickly got to her feet after seeing Andrew stand up and toddle off toward the kitchen. She was very attentive when it came to watching the smallest child in her care.

"Not-ahh...She my mommy." Aurora muttered to herself in a pouty voice as she went back to playing with her dolls when she saw that she had been left alone in the living room.

Instinctively, Catherine's eyes shifted to the laundry room where she heard the door to the garage open and then close. She knew that it must be Stephanie home early from her meeting. She waited to say anything until Steph actually walked into the kitchen.

"Look who's home, Andrew. It's your mommy!" Ms. Scot announced in an excited tone causing Andy's attention to turn to his mother who was across the kitchen.

"Mamama-mama-ma!" The one year old exclaimed with enthusiasm as he began toddling in his mommy's direction as fast as he was able to.

Hearing Catherine's announcement of her mother's arrival, Aurora ran to the living room's access to the kitchen and then stopped dead in her tracks as she heard her mother speak. She was sure her mommy was going to say hi to her and tell her how much she missed her.

"Hi my sweet baby boy, come here! Were you a good little man for Cathy?" Steph asked while she bent down and reached out for her son. She was beaming with pride as she watched her younger child making his way toward her.

"He was good as gold for me, both of them were." Ms. Scot replied with a smile.

"Mommy! Mommy, I wanna hug!" Aurora Rose hollered out as she ran full force across the kitchen not caring at all about her little half brother who was in her path.

Just before Andy reached his mother's arms, his sister crashed right into the back of him, pushing him out of her way. He staggered, losing control of his balance before falling down like a ton of bricks, banging his head on the kitchen floor. The moment he realized that he had taken a spill, his face contorted into a look of anguish with his mouth open. And then, seconds later, he bellowed a strong cry reaching up toward his mommy.

"Aurora, honey, you just bowled over your little brother. You have to look out for him." Steph lectured moving away from her daughter, who only wanted a hug, in favor of scooping up her baby.

The three year old let out an exhale that was full of jealous frustration. She looked on crestfallen as her mommy gave all the attention, that was supposed to be for her, to the baby. She hated him for it. Why did Mommy call him her little brother when Daddy said he wasn't?

"Shh, it's okay, sweetie. It was an accident. Aurora, tell Andy that you're sorry, please." Steph instructed looking back over at her daughter who was still showing a pouty face.

"No!" Aurora retorted stomping one of her feet to add a bit of attitude to her refusal.

Stephanie's mouth gaped open slightly. She was most certainly taken aback by her daughter's reaction to her request for an apology. Her attitude was coming out of nowhere and Steph didn't understand it. Her three year old had always been so sweet, especially to her younger brother. What was going on with her? Had the terrible twos come late? Was it the terrible threes instead?

"Excuse me? Aurora Rose Levesque, you apologize to Andrew right now or you're going to go in time out on the stairs." Steph warned in a calm yet stern voice while she looked directly into her child's eyes.

Aurora shook her head before holding her arms over her chest to show her defiance. She didn't want to say she was sorry, because she wasn't. It was baby Andrew who should be sorry for taking her mommy's attention.

Stephanie turned and looked at her nanny, who had merely been watching like a spectator on the sidelines.

"Cathy, would you take Andrew?" She asked leaning toward Ms. Scot so that she could take her one year old off her hands.

Catherine quickly took Andrew before looking on as Stephanie then took Aurora firmly by the hand and began to lead her out of the kitchen en route to the vestibule where the staircase was waiting for her. Immediately as she was being led off, Aurora began to act out letting out a loud whine, she stomped her feet a few times before she tried sitting down on the floor to keep her mother from taking her to the stairs when they reached the foyer. Stephanie let out a exasperated sigh, before picking up the three year old and carrying her the rest of the way to the wooden stairs.

"Mommy, no! Mommy!" Aurora screamed with all her might as the tears began to flow and her face turned red.

"Aurora, listen to me. I'm putting you on the stairs for time out. You knocked the baby down and you refused to apologize to him. I want you to sit on this step for three minutes and think about your actions. When time out is over, you are going to say that you are sorry." Stephanie told her child the moment after she sat her down on the third step up from the floor. She was speaking to her in a loud voice so that she could be heard over her daughter's crying jag.

"No! Mommy, hold me! I want you!" Aurora cried, kicking her feet on the wooden step under her feet.

Stephanie started to stand up straight when the three year grabbed hold of her business suit with both hands in an attempt to keep her mother from leaving her on the stairs.

"Mommy will hold you after you have time out and then say that you are sorry." Stephanie calmly explained as she then removed her daughter's hands from her clothing and then left her sitting on the stairs.

"Mommy! No leave me, Mommy! Mommy!" Aurora Rose begged crying her little heart out as she continued to relentlessly slam her feet down on the steps.

As Stephanie walked back toward the kitchen, she felt sick to her stomach. It killed her to have to remove her little girl's hands from her suit and leave her crying on the staircase. With the way Aurora was carrying on, Steph wondered if she had her afternoon nap. It wasn't like her to be this out of control and defiant.

"Did Aurora take her nap? She's usually not like this." Stephanie inquired the moment she rejoined Cathy and the baby in the kitchen.

"Yes, she did, and she was completely fine until you came home. I'm sure it's just a little touch of sibling rivalry. It's completely normal." Ms. Scot assured her new boss before she gave her back her child.

"I guess so, but that's just not like her. She's not like that with the baby. Maybe she's just upset because I left for the meeting without saying goodbye to her." Steph pointed out, giving her best guess as to why her daughter had misbehaved upon her return home.

"That could be, you do know your daughter better than anyone. Could it also be that she misses her step-father?" Catherine asked posing yet another possibility for the child's outburst.

The nanny's suggestion caused Stephanie to wonder if Kurt's absence from the home really was a legitimate explanation for Aurora's behavior. Despite the fact that Paul had really started making an effort to be in their daughter's life, it was Kurt who was there to play and take care of her three year old daily. How could Aurora not be affected by him not being home? No matter how much Stephanie was trying to protect her children from being hurt from the separation, it was still affecting them; Aurora was proof of that.

Steph had to wait until the three minutes were up before she could return to her daughter. The first full two minutes were filled with Aurora Rose screeching and crying. It was during the last minute of her punishment that she finally started to calm down.

"Aurora, you're finished your time out." Stephanie told her child when she returned to the staircase.

Aurora was lying across the step with her hands covering her eyes. Her small frame shook each time she sucked in air. She was fighting to hold back her tears. She didn't move an inch after hearing her mother's words.

"I put you in time out because you refused to say you were sorry for accidentally knocking the baby down. I need to hear you say that you are sorry." Steph explained to her daughter after she gently lifted her into a seated position so that she could speak directly to her, face to face.

"Sorry..." The three year old finally muttered as she scrubbed her wet eyes with both hands.

Stephanie smiled, relieved that her daughter finally was being compliant. She then reached forward and took her little girl into her arms for a hug.

"I love you so much, sweetheart. Everything is going to be okay." Steph promised in a whisper before showering her little girl with hugs and kisses.

Stephanie closed her eyes tight, feeling her own tears beginning to form in them. She hated to think that Aurora Rose was acting out because of a feeling of familial instability. Her child had been through so much in her three short years of life: a divorce, her mother's remarriage that came with the acquisition of a new sibling, and now, Kurt's disappearance on "business". And then, if that wasn't enough, she had a new stranger called her nanny watching her while her mother went back to work. It was no wonder why she was getting upset. Stephanie wanted her baby girl to know that she was always going to be a consistent part of her life, no matter what.

"I want you, Mommy." Aurora pled through her tears.

The three year old wanted more than anything to be her mommy's one and only child. She didn't understand why she had to share Mommy with the baby who wanted to take all of her mother's love and attention. It was her daddy that had pointed this out to her, and it had changed the child's mindset about her place in the Angle family. After all, if her own daddy said it at Granny and Pop's beach house, it must have been the truth.

"Mommy is right here, sweetheart, and I'm not going anywhere." Stephanie whispered while lovingly rocking her child in her arms.

* * *

Kurt quietly sat in the back of a limousine. His blue eyes scanned the moving scenery through the tinted windows as his mind stayed deep in thought.

It was Friday now, almost a week since he had seen his wife and son. It had been very hard for Angle to give his wife space. Not a day had gone by where he didn't have the desire to pick up the phone and call her. He missed her and the children and would often spend time thinking about how they were getting along without him.

In the meantime, Kurt had done so much in the past few days, it was hard to believe. Brock had come through with the MMA physical, and of course he had passed it despite his bruised ribs. Lesnar's connections had gotten him into contact with the UFC president, Dana White, who was interested in using Angle as a guest appearance for his upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter. Of course, with the opportunity came with it a stipulation. First, Angle had to prove himself inside of the cage in a typical MMA tryout for a potential fighter. With Angle's history as a professional wrestler, Dana wanted to make sure that Kurt was legitimately skilled in the art of mixed martial arts before bringing him on to his program. The other stipulation was that if he was indeed credible as a fighter, Angle would need to seek a full release from his WWE contract in order to pursue any kind of dealings with the UFC.

This was such a huge decision for Kurt; not just a career decision but a personal one as well. It was clear that the only way he could pursue his MMA aspiration in the juggernaut that was UFC was for him to walk away from World Wrestling Entertainment, his wife's company. Wouldn't that be like walking out on Stephanie and her family too? Was that what he wanted? Could he pay that high of a price to chance his dream of fighting in the cage? It was the fact that Stephanie had given him back her wedding ring that even made him contemplate any of this.

Brock had told him that he needed to take it one step at a time. He needed to impress Dana White in the octagon before even worrying about his company allegiance. The tryout was scheduled for Monday night and Lesnar's advice for his friend was to train hard all weekend. Angle, however, decided that he wanted to use his time off to fly down to Tennessee to see his two children, Kyra and Kody. His two older children hadn't even gotten to say goodbye to him because of his arrest during their visit to Connecticut.

"This is the listed address, sir." The limo driver told Kurt the moment after he pulled up in front of Jeff Jarrett's Hendersonville luxury home that sat on lake front property.

"Okay, just give me a minute..."

Angle had gotten the address of the home after a phone call from his lawyer, who then set up a his visitation for the Friday afternoon before Kyra went back to school. Kurt took his time before emerging from the rented limo. It was going to take a lot out of him to be civil to his ex-wife, especially, when she had talked shit about him to Stephanie. Hell, it was partially her fault that he was estranged from his wife because of her spitefulness.

"This is for my kids..." He muttered to himself as his reasoning for why he was there. He then slowly brought his hand to the door handle and let himself out of the automobile.

"Daddy!" Kyra called out with excitement as she ran across the front lawn to her father.

Angle's oldest child had been waiting patiently for her father's arrival for a good half an hour. Kody, who didn't have the attention span or the patience, had left the front porch for the pool in the back yard where the Jarrett girls were playing. It was only Kyra who was still sitting in her bathing suit on the front porch when the limousine had pulled up.

"Hey little girl, how are you? I missed you so much!" Kurt lovingly told his daughter after lifting her up into his arms.

"I missed you too! Everyone's in the pool, Dad. Come watch me and see how good I can swim!" Kyra told her father pointing to the house.

Kurt instructed his hired limo driver to wait since he fully planned on taking his children out for the day after he said his piece to his ex-wife. He then set his daughter back onto her feet and allowed her to lead the way to the back of the Jarrett home.

It was in the back of the home that Angle saw a resort worthy swimming pool complete with water slide, an outdoor patio, as well as a pool house that had its own bar and grill. And right there in the center of it all, was his former wife, Karen, who was enjoying every minute of being the new Queen of the Mountain, the future Mrs. Jeff Jarrett. Taylor Swift music was blaring from an outdoor surround sound system drowning out the sound of the kids at play in the pool.

Kurt couldn't help but roll his eyes at the sight of Karen lying back in a patio lounge chair soaking up the Tennessee sun. She looked like a stuck up snob that had forgotten that she had once been a stripper.

"Kody, look, Daddy's here! He's really here!" Kyra called after her little brother who was playing in the pool in the arms of Jeff's oldest daughter, Joslyn.

Kody's face lit up with excitement when he saw that his sister was indeed telling the truth and that his father was standing right there in his back yard. He launched himself out of the teenager's arms and began to doggy paddle to the pool's ladder, making complete use of his inflatable armbands.

"Hey buddy, looks like you're having fun. I missed you." Kurt said bending down to meet his wet child with a hug, not caring about getting himself damp.

"Dad, watch me!" Kody told his father after a quick hug.

"All right, son, I'm watching." Angle replied folding his arms while smiling as he then watched his son ascend the ladder of the pool slide. He laughed out loud watching as fearless Kody glided down the slide on his belly going head first into the pool.

"Watch me too, Dad! I learned how to do a cannon ball off the driving board!" Kyra then exclaimed running to perform her trick.

"You're late. You were suppose to be here at noon. I have things I have to do today, besides waiting around for you to pick up your kids." Karen told her ex-husband without even bothering to take off her sunglasses or even look in his direction.

"Please, if you were in a hurry for me to take them for the day, you would have had them dressed and ready to go with me. You and I need to talk." Angle replied keeping his eyes on his children while moving over to sit in the patio chair that was next to where his ex was lounging.

"I'm so not in the mood to even attempt to have a discussion with you. The fact that you consider yourself a decent father is a joke. If I had it my way, those children would never see you again, and Jeff would legally adopt them as his own." She added in a low voice for Angle's ears only.

"Well you can forget about that, Karen, because that will never happen. Sure, I'm not always the ideal dad, but I do the best I can. Kyra and Kody are my children, no matter what you or Jeff want to believe. I have a right to see my kids."

"Oh yes, because their last visit with you was so memorable. I'm sure all children want their visit with their father to consist of falling out of a wrestling ring on their head, witnessing their father's violent outbursts, oh, and not saying goodbye to their father because he was arrested. Did I cover the gist of your last visit with them?" Karen asked in a condescending voice that made her ex-husband want to strangle her.

"What the hell is your problem, Karen? Are you still bitter because I found happiness with Stephanie instead of you? Is that why you felt the need to spew your garbage to her when you came to pick up the kids?" Angle asked glaring over at the woman he had once loved.

"Typical Kurt Angle, you think that it's always about you. I told the new Mrs. Angle the truth. You're nothing but a self absorbed meathead. You're only happy when you're talking about yourself and when you get what you want. It would only be a matter of time before Stephanie realized that about you. I was doing her a favor that I wish someone would have done for me." Karen replied as she sat up in the chair so that she could keep tabs on all five kids in the pool.

"I love Steph. You can't even compare my marriage to her with the marriage we had. Unlike you, Karen, I've learned from my mistakes. I've grown as a person since our divorce, and I'm trying to be a better husband and father. Too bad you can't say the same thing." Angle quickly said back the moment she had finished her assessment of him.

"Oh please, quit feeding me lines of your bullshit. I know about your suspension from WWE, and you and I both know that the only reason you are out here is because Stephanie threw you out on your bald head. When you and Vinnie Mac's daughter were busy playing house in Greenwich, you never made an attempt to see these kids. I know you, Kurt, I was married to you for a decade. You can't bullshit me." The former Mrs. Angle said with a sneer while she removed her sunglasses from the brim of her nose and set them on top of her head.

"Fuck you, Karen, say whatever you want about me to whoever you want. I'm here to visit with my children, and you aren't going to ruin that." Angle retorted in a low voice before he walked away from his ex and approached the pool.

"Kyra and Kody, come on, let's go get some ice cream!" Kurt said with as much enthusiasm as he could muster.

Both children cheered and quickly exited the pool to be at their father's side. In one fluid motion, Angle lifted his son up and onto his shoulders and then took his daughter by the hand.

"Guys, tell your mother that you'll see her later!" Angle told both his children as he looked back at Karen with a hateful stare that she in turn reciprocated right back at him.

"Bye my babies, have fun!" Karen then called out in a fake voice that turned Kurt's stomach. He didn't know how he could have ever married that woman. He was more than sorry that she was mother to two of his children.


	54. Chapter 54

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-Four

With the passing of a full week, it was safe to say that Stephanie had fallen back into her old routine at World Wrestling Entertainment headquarters. She and Nanny Cathy had worked out the logistics of their day to day schedule and the children really seem to take well to it. Steph was right back in the thick of things in the office, and she loved it. Having to focus her mind on the creative welfare of her company kept her from thinking about her marriage that was in limbo.

Steph was working extra hard in the past week. She had to catch up on the work she had missed while she was away. Sure, many of her team members had given their best attempt in picking up the slack due to her absence, but most of the work that had been done wasn't up to her standards. She was doing quite a lot of revising, rewriting, and also the new work load that was coming in daily. Still, even with her nose to the grind stone, she couldn't help feel that something was amiss in the office; to be more specific, it was her creative team that was behaving differently around her. At first, Stephanie was quick to shrug it off believing that it was just the team adjusting to having her back. Now, after a full week of noticing it, she was finally ready to address it.

"Okay people, what is it?" Stephanie asked aloud, her voice cut through the awkward silence that was supposed to be a productive brainstorming session for the creative team. It was only ten minutes until lunch and not a lot of work had been accomplished.

Each and every employee looked up from their notes and looked at Steph with a look of confusion. The women squirmed a bit in their office chairs while some of the men cleared their throats. It was clear that they all knew what the 'what' was that she was referring to, but no one was going to speak up to answer her.

"You know, every time I turn around I see you guys huddled up whispering about something, and then you immediately disperse when I walk up. I need to know what's going on, because I keep getting the vibe that you are all walking on egg shells when working with me." She continued holding her hands on the table in front of her as she leaned forward. She was ready to get it all out on the table, complete transparency.

Everyone's eyes went from being focused on Steph to darting nervously at each other. No one really wanted to come out and tell her the reason that everyone was feeling so awkward. It was clear that she hadn't heard the gossip about her marriage that was spreading like wildfire in the company. They didn't know how she would take hearing about it from any of them, her employees.

"Come on, somebody better speak up. I don't care if we have to sit here through our lunch break." Steph added leaning back in her executive chair, folding her arms in front of her to show her determination.

"Well, Steph, umm..." One of the female members began in a trembling voice that caused her to take a deep breath before continuing.

"There's ah, a rumor going around the company...See, Candice Michelle announced that she's pregnant, and umm...The rumor is that it's Kurt's." The woman explained with her head bowed. She couldn't even bring herself to look at Stephanie while she exposed the harsh rumor about her husband and another woman.

Steph felt like her stomach did a back flip after being blindsided with the details about what was WWE's latest juicy gossip. Her jaw dropped. She was speechless as her mind raced with the thoughts of her husband cheating on her with a diva. The words of his ex-wife played over and over again in her head, torturing her. Was it at all possible that the rumor could be true?

"Of course, we don't believe it, Steph." Another female piped up in a weak attempt to put their boss' mind at ease.

"Yeah, it's just diva gossip that everyone is taking way too seriously. You know how people like to talk. Kurt had been showing up without you to RAW and being all friendly with Candice, then he gets suspended and you come back to work without your wedding ring on. Some are piecing things together." A male writer tried to explain.

"People are saying that you and Kurt are separated. There's no truth to that, is there, Steph?" Another female asked chiming in to the barrage of comments that were being hurled at Stephanie.

Oh God, they were asking if she and her husband were separated. She could only imagine how it would look to them when they found out that they actually were. They would think that it was because of the supposed affair. Why didn't she know about this sooner? Did Kurt know about it? She hadn't even spoken to her husband since she had made him leave her family party.

Steph felt her composure starting to slip away. It was as if the room was starting to close in on her. The more details she heard about the ugly rumor, the harder it was for her to keep it together. She couldn't speak to any of it for fear of bursting into tears. She was a professional, she couldn't lose it in front of her underlings. Her stomach began to feel like it had been turned inside out; its bile burning at her navel before traveling up her torso toward her esophagus.

"Excuse me." She managed to mutter before a shaking right hand cupped over her mouth as she sprang from her chair.

"Steph, are you okay?" One of the women asked with concern as Steph ran out of the room like her life depended on it.

The whole creative team sat there in complete disbelief at what had just happened. Should someone go after her and make sure that she was okay? Should they just mind their own business and take their lunch break? Or maybe they should work through lunch to get something accomplished since RAW was later that night.

Stephanie sent herself careening into the first bathroom stall nearest to the restroom door. She barely had time to lift the toilet seat lid before her partially digested breakfast came up into her mouth. She moaned in pain while retching uncontrollably. When the vomiting subsided, she let herself fall back onto her bottom on the restroom floor, leaning her head against the black stall divider.

While the nausea was beginning to subside, the overwhelming sense of sadness and thought of possible betrayal was still with her. In light of her current situation, Steph couldn't help but think back to the night that she discovered her first husband had been cheating on her. It had been the same feeling she was experiencing now. She vividly remembered getting sick in her kitchen sink after reading Paul's mistress' email to him. It was what she was feeling now.

Her two French manicured hands tucked her brown locks behind her ears, she breathed in deep, and let out a soft whimper. Two black streams of tears and mascara ran down her face. In her mind, she tried desperately to rationalize what her creative team had told her about the rumor. After all, it _was_ a just a rumor. She had no solid evidence that Kurt wasn't faithful to her. All she actually had on him was the fact that he allowed Candice to watch his children on more than one occasion. Did that make him a philanderer? No, a lazy father, maybe, but not that. Besides, when would he have time to carry on an affair with another woman? Because of his one of a kind contract that he and her father worked out, Angle rarely had any media appearances or house shows. He went to RAW and then came back home and trained. That was his life. It wasn't like he was off doing "photo shoots" in New York.

The sound of the rest room door swinging open caused Steph to snap out of her thoughts. She then heard high heels clicking against the tile floor that were getting louder as the person approached the row of bathroom stalls.

"Stephanie, are you all right?" Bethany Walker of the creative team asked in a concerned voice.

"Yeah...I'm fine, Beth." Steph lied wiping away her tears before she rose to her feet. She took a deep breath before pushing the metal slide lock to let herself out of the stall.

"Are you sure?"" Beth pressed on after the toilet automatically flushed and her boss walked over to the nearest sink.

"I said I'm fine!" Stephanie snapped back immediately.

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't mean-"

"No, I'm the one who's sorry. I didn't mean to be nasty. I'm just not doing too well right now." Stephanie apologized having to really try and keep herself from getting emotional in front of her colleague.

"If you need someone to talk to, I'd be happy to listen." offered Beth in a sympathetic tone of voice.

"Thank you, but, ah, I'll manage." Steph muttered before placing her hands under the basin faucet to make the water flow.

Mrs. Walker looked on while Stephanie leaned over and took a sip of the water that had filled in her clasped hands. She swished the liquid in her mouth before spitting it back into the sink, rinsing away the disgusting taste of vomit.

"You know, if you're not feeling well, you should go home and rest. You've obviously have a lot on your mind. We'll get everything done and email you everything for approval."

Steph closed her eyes for a moment. Right now, going home sounded like a good idea. It wasn't like the creative team hadn't managed without her before, and she did have Cathy the rest of the day to watch her children. She definitely needed to relax. The one thing that she didn't want was to slip back into her bout with extreme morning sickness which was very likely to happen.

"Yeah, I'm going to go. I'll have my cell on me if the team needs me, but, yes, shoot me an email with what you guys come up with." Stephanie told her while studying her own pale face in the mirror.

Her father would be less than thrilled in her decision to leave work early, but that was too bad. There was no way that Stephanie would be able to get any work done after her own team had dropped a bombshell of a rumor about her own husband right in her lap. She had to get home. As she packed up her leather satchel in her office, she was in a complete mental haze; simply going through the motions. Even the drive home from Stamford was a mindless task for her. She felt like an unforgiving two ton weight was on her shoulders. It was the knowledge about what those in her company were saying about her marriage. Simply leaving work wasn't going to be a successful means of escaping it. The stress stayed with her, like a dark cloud over her head that she couldn't get away from.

* * *

Ms. Scot had been a bit startled by the sound of the garage door opening in the laundry room. She was relieved to see that it was the lady of the house. Cathy wasn't expecting Mrs. Angle home until much later in the day.

"Oh hi, Steph, we weren't expecting you home at lunchtime. You decided to take a half day?" Catherine asked.

"Yeah, I'm not really feeling well." replied Stephanie as she sat her car keys and purse on the wet bar's counter top and placed her work satchel on the floor.

"Mommy, you have wunch wif me?" Aurora inquired from where she sat in her boaster seat with a voice full of enthusiasm.

"Yeah Steph, would you like me to fix you a plate of food? Did you have lunch already?" Catherine added while continuing to fix Andrew's bowl of baby food.

"No, thanks, I'm not hungry. I think I just want to go upstairs and lay down for a while."

"Ma-ma!" Andrew called out while sitting in his high chair. The moment his mother looked over at him, he smiled and flapped his right hand to wave at her before reaching out for her.

As much as Stephanie wanted to interact with her two children, she just didn't feel up to doing so. Her whole body ached from the stress of the day. Sleep would be her only escape from it.

"Hi honey, Mommy loves you and Aurora." Steph told her baby with a weak smile before she turned to leave the kitchen.

Unsatisfied by the amount of attention from his mother, Andy began to whine. His back stiffened and he pushed his belly against the high chair tray showing how badly he wanted his mommy to get him out. The whining then turned into full blown crying when he saw Steph disappear into the hallway.

"Be quiet, baby!" The three year old screamed aloud holding her hands to her ears.

Hearing her son's cries echoing through her spacious home caused Steph to begin to cry as she ascended the stairs. Just when she thought she was mastering her roles as mother and businesswoman, she was thrown for an emotional loop. Now, she was shirking not only her professional responsibility to WWE, but also her responsibility as a mother. She felt terrible, not just about the situation, but about herself. And to think she was going to be bringing another life into the world surrounded by all the drama.

Seeking comfort, Stephanie quickly changed from her business attire into a t-shirt and yoga pants before crawling into bed. She put her blackberry on her bedside table, just in case work need her. Steph tossed and turned quite a bit in her California king. Her mind just wouldn't stop working overtime. She fixated on the rumor. Many times she contemplated calling her husband just to find out if he knew about the gossip about him. She couldn't bring herself to call, she didn't feel up to it. It felt like forever before she was able to get relaxed enough to drift off to sleep.

The shrill sound of her blackberry ringing caused her head to dart off her pillow to reach the cell phone. Because she was still half asleep and assumed it was work, she didn't even bother to look at the caller id.

"Hello?" She said closing her eyes that felt heavy from her drowsiness.

"Hey Steph."

"...Paul?" Steph asked furrowing her brow. She was a bit surprised that it wasn't work calling her but her former husband.

"I hope I didn't bother you at work. I didn't want to text you because I've found that hasn't been the best way to contact you as of late." Levesque explained, ending with a slight chuckle.

"What do want, Paul?" Stephanie questioned in a testy voice that still sounded a bit hoarse from her sleepiness.

"I wanted to know if I could come over and pick up Aurora. I'd like to have her over night and I'd bring her back tomorrow afternoon. I just wanted to check with you first before I came over, because I don't think your new nanny would just let me take her without you saying it was okay."

Steph let out a long sigh, letting her head fall back onto her pillow while keeping the cell phone at her ear. She hesitated for a moment because she really didn't want anyone coming over to the house after the day she had. But this wasn't just anyone who wanted to come over, this was Aurora's father. Stephanie felt a small measure of guilt because of how she had been handling her ex-husband as of late. There had been two text messages that she had gotten from him over the course of the last week, and she had ignored both.

"Uh, yeah, I guess you could stop by and pick her up whenever."Steph told him nonchalantly.

"Okay, well how have you and the kids been doing? I figured you've had your hands full lately." Levesque commented, wanting to chitchat with his ex.

"Paul, um, I don't mean to be rude but I'm not doing too well at the moment. I'm going to need to let you go."

"Oh, okay, I guess I'll see you later today if you're home from work when I come over to get Aurora. Bye, Steph."

"Bye." She muttered back before ending the call and tossing her phone back onto her nightstand.

Stephanie yawned hard before pulling the bed sheets up over her body and tucking them under her chin. It didn't take her long to fall back asleep.

* * *

Aurora Rose hummed happily while lying on her belly across the plush carpet of her living room. In her right hand was a red crayon that she was moving across a piece of white construction paper. Scattered around her was a sea of all the different colored Crayola crayons from her sixty four piece box that was laying empty right next to her.

She was making her mommy a pretty picture to help her feel better. Not only had Mommy missed having lunch with her, she had been upstairs resting for most of the afternoon. When her mother did come down, she had informed her daughter and Cathy that Aurora's father was coming over. The three year old hoped that when her mommy saw this beautiful picture she had made her, Steph would feel better and be just as happy and excited to see Daddy as Aurora was going to be.

"What's that pretty picture you're drawing, Aurora?" Cathy asked peering down at what the three year old had been intently working on while she had been changing Andrew.

"It a picture of Mommy. See, I maked it so she feel better!" Aurora Rose explained with enthusiasm as she pointed with her left hand at her best attempt at drawing Stephanie.

"Oh, that's very nice, sweetie. I'm sure that your mommy is going to love what you made her." Catherine told the child with a voice full of encouragement before she placed Andrew in his playpen.

"I done!" Aurora exclaimed before getting up from the floor and clapping her hands together to show her satisfaction in what she had drawn.

"Can I add one little thing? Can I put your name and the date on it? It will let your mommy know that it's from you and what day you drew it on." Cathy suggested with her extending her arms out for the child's artwork.

The three year old nodded her head in agreement before she bent over and picked up her drawing to hand to her nanny. Cathy then grabbed a dark blue crayon that was the closest to her feet and then proceeded to use it to write the little girl's name and the date.

"There you go, it's a perfect masterpiece. Where do you want to put it so you can give it to her when she comes downstairs?"

"On the table wight hewe." announced Aurora Rose after she was given her drawing back and placed it on the center coffee table in front of the large sofa.

"Okay, now it's time to help put all the crayons back in the box." announced the nanny as she already started to pick them up. Aurora joined in and they quickly got them put away.

The doorbell chimed signaling the arrival of Aurora's daddy. The little girl jumped up and down twice before she ran full force to the front door while the nanny followed behind.

"Hey, how's daddy's little princess today?" Paul gushed the minute he laid eyes on his child from where he stood on the front porch.

Aurora giggled and reached her arms out for her father. In one fluid motion, Levesque lifted his daughter up and into his muscular arms for a hug and a kiss.

"How are you today, Paul?" Catherine asked politely, graciously stepping out of the way so that her boss' ex-husband could come inside.

"I'm better now that I'm with my Aurora. I think she's grown in the week I didn't see her. Pretty soon she's going to be as big as her mommy and daddy." Paul joked while he playfully tickled his child causing her to belt out the very same laugh of her mother.

"You all packed and ready to go, sweetheart?" He then asked as he walked into the kitchen with his daughter still in his arms.

"No, I wanna wait for mommy to wakey up before bye-byes." The child explained as her father sat her down onto her feet.

"Steph's home already? She's asleep?" Levesque asked narrowing his hazel eyes. He wasn't expecting her to be home, but since she was, the visit would be even better than he imagined.

"Yes, she came home early because she wasn't feeling well." explained Ms. Scot.

"Daddy, wets go outside and pway!" Aurora begged tugging on her father's hand as she pointed toward the sliding glass door to the back deck.

"All right, honey. Let's go." He replied taking his daughter by the hand to lead her to the back yard via the back deck.

* * *

Stephanie ran her fingers though her hair as she slowly made her way down the stairs. While she had slept a great deal of the afternoon away, it did nothing to relieve her of her stressful state of being. She had dreamed about Kurt. It was a nightmarish hell of a dream where he had indeed gotten Candice pregnant and wanted to divorce her. The only comfort she felt was when she awoke to realize it hadn't happened, not yet anyway.

The ground floor of her home was pretty quiet. Steph stopped in the hallway for a moment to listen for the sign of where everyone was. She faintly heard Catherine's voice coming from the living room. She shuffled in her bare feet into the living room where only Ms. Scot and her son sat on the carpet floor.

"Ah, shit!" Stephanie barked after she tripped over baby Andy's Fisher Price xylophone that she hadn't even seen in front of her. With a flare of anger, she kicked the toy, sending it twirling across the carpet into a bunch of his toys.

"Oh, are you okay?" Cathy asked realizing that her boss had entered the room after the commotion with the baby toys. "Did you get some rest?"

"If you want to call it that." Steph replied in a dull voice before bringing her hand to her face. She had a terrible headache.

"Ma-ma!" Andy shrieked with enthusiasm pointing up at his mother.

"Yes, it's your mommy. Do want to show Mommy what you learned to do? Go ahead, blow Mommy a kiss. Go on, sweetie, blow a kiss to mommy." Ms. Scot told the child before she demonstrated the motion that she wanted him to replicate.

Andrew's wet mouth formed a smile. He quickly brought his hand to his face, almost slapping himself, and then pulled it away just as fast as Cathy added the "muah" sound effect before chuckling.

"That's so cute. Muah back at you, my little love." commented Stephanie before blowing her own kiss in the direction of her one year old.

"Where's Aurora? Did her father come get her already?" She then inquired speaking on the subject of how quiet it was with her three year old nowhere in sight.

"Oh, both of them are outside in the back yard playing. Aurora didn't want to leave without saying goodbye to you, and I wasn't sure if I needed to pack her an overnight bag."

"Oh, I'll take care of the bag of clothes, don't worry about it. She's only going over to spend the night." Steph muttered before leaving the living room for her spacious kitchen.

Approaching the kitchen sink, Stephanie's blue eyes peered out the wide kitchen window. The corners of her mouth instinctively pulled taunt to form a smile when she caught sight of her little girl having fun with her father in the yard. Paul had Aurora swung over his shoulder like a sack a potatoes and he was spinning around in place. A small bit of laughter then escaped through Steph's lips when she saw Paul gracefully fall into the grass with their daughter and then start tickling her. The three year old rolled away from her father's playful advances and it was then that Paul noticed Stephanie watching. He shot her a smile and then raised his hand to wave hi. Without even thinking about it, Steph returned the wave which then signaled Paul to stand up like he was finished playing and ready to go back inside to talk to her.

"Hey Cathy, I'm going to try and get some work done in my study! Just give me a holler when Aurora is ready to say goodbye!" Stephanie hollered aloud so that her voice would carry into the living room.

She waited for a few seconds until she heard the confirmation from her nanny that she would do just that. And then, Steph quickly made her way toward her and her husband's study. While watching her daughter and ex-husband interacting from a distance was nice, Stephanie really didn't want to put herself in an opportunity to have to dialogue with him. The last thing she needed was him seeing her in her current emotional state of being. Besides, her blackberry, that she had stuffed inside her yoga pants, had been going crazy with notifications of emails. There was work to be done.

Paul was a bit surprised by the fact that Stephanie was nowhere to be found when he and his daughter came back inside. His hazel eyes scanned the kitchen and then he followed his daughter into the living room.

"Where did Stephanie go to?" He asked the nanny after seeing that his ex-wife wasn't in that room either.

"She's in her study trying to get some work done. " Ms. Scot replied still playing with baby Andrew on the floor.

"Always about work, her father keeps her so busy and stressed that it's a wonder she hasn't gotten herself a prescription for some Xanax." Paul commented shaking his head. It was clear that his former wife still couldn't even take a sick day without attempting to get some work done. It had to be the McMahon in her.

"Oh shoot, I can't believe I forgot." The nanny remarked after a realization had dawned on her.

"What?" Paul asked back quickly.

"I need to go drop off a prescription at the pharmacy today. I didn't have time this morning, and I need to get there before it closes later tonight. Gosh, I really don't want to disturb Steph now that she's working. Even if I were to take the baby with me, I'd need his car seat." Catherine explained with regret.

"Go ahead and do whatever you need to. I'll watch the kids until you come back." Levesque offered shrugging off the problem like it was no big deal.

"Are you sure? I don't want to impose, after all, they are my responsibility."

"Don't worry about it, I've watched them before for Steph. I'll keep the fort down." Paul promised holding up a hitch hiker thumb telling the nanny that it was okay for her to hit the road.

Ms. Scot thanked Paul again and quickly went into the kitchen to grab her purse to go. She wanted to get the errand done as fast as she could with the hope that Stephanie wouldn't be upset with her having to leave the children.

"So, you and diaper butt over here like the new nanny?" Levesque asked his daughter the moment after Cathy left. He plopped down in the nearest sofa.

"Mmhmm."

"She seems nice." He added chewing his mint gum while nodding his head slightly.

Andrew toddled over to where Aurora had left her box of crayons on the floor and squatted down to pick them up. Once the box was in his hands, he shook it, liking the sound of them shifting back and forth. He stayed still while doing this.

"You think he's taking a dump?" Levesque casually asked his daughter with a chuckle.

His inquiry about the baby caused Aurora to notice that her crayon box was in her younger brother's hands. Quickly, she arose from her play area and approached Andrew.

"No, my cwayons!" Aurora scolded the baby as she ripped the box out of his hand so that she could take it back to her area. She set the box on the small shelf next to her doll house and resumed playing.

"Ooo." Andy whimpered first looking up at his sister, and then looking over at Paul, who was the only adult in the room. He then stuck his bottom lip out and let out a little whine.

"Jeeze Aurora, chill out." Paul commented, a bit surprised by his daughter's quick reaction to the baby. It was certainly different than her normal behavior.

Looking for more stimulation, baby Andrew got to his feet and staggered over to the coffee table. His blue eyes scanned all the objects sitting on top of it, before focusing in on his sister's artwork. He strained a little bit, reaching for the corner of the construction paper in the center of the table. When his hand grabbed hold of it, he pulled it off the surface and held it in his hands.

"Ooo, dat?" Andy babbled playfully, pointing to the drawing.

It was then the sound of the construction paper tearing that got Aurora's attention. Her eyes widened before she sprang to her feet and ran over to the baby.

"No, that my pwesent for Mommy! No!" Aurora hollered pulling the slightly torn construction paper from the baby's hands.

Having the paper ripped from his hands, caused Andy to whine and try and reach to get it back. This of course pissed Aurora Rose off even more, and she pushed the child back, sending him back into the coffee table. It was a sickening sound when the side of the one year old's head smacked into the glass coffee table with a good amount of force.

"Oh shit!" said Paul with alarm before jumping up from his seat and rushing over to the baby.

Andrew's mouth opened wide as he then sucked in a big breath of air before letting out a bloodcurdling scream that echoed throughout the whole house. Aurora backed up a few steps letting the construction paper flutter to the floor faced down. Even she was startled by the volume of the baby's crying.

"Shhh, it's okay, you're all right." Levesque assured in his best calming voice after he picked up the hysterical baby.

Paul brought his hand up to the side of the child's head. It was hot to the touch and he could feel a goose egg already forming. He then looked over at his daughter who looked like she was getting ready to cry too.

"He taked Mommy's pwesent, Daddy! He hurted hisself!" The three year old shouted in her own defense. She was concerned that she was going to get in big trouble because of the baby getting hurt. Was her own daddy going to yell at her?

Paul let out a sigh while he tried rocking the baby in his arms. Nothing was soothing the child. Andrew continued to wail, his face was now beet red and wet with tears.

"What's going on in here?" Stephanie hollered the minute she rushed into the living room.

Before Paul could even attempt to reply, Steph was taking the screaming baby from him. She studied her child and immediately saw the large bump on the side of his face. And then she looked to her ex-husband for an explanation. Aurora Rose had sat down on the carpet floor. Had demeanor was that of a convicted criminal who was ready to face his sentencing. It was going to be time out for sure.

"He was toddling along when he tripped over one of his toys and fell head first into the glass coffee table." Levesque heard himself lie in response to Steph's question.

He had made up the fabrication for his three year old daughter. The last thing he wanted was to see his little angel getting in trouble with her mommy when he should have stepped in to prevent the accident in the first place.

"Oh honey, you really got a bad booboo." voiced Steph bringing her baby into a hug while her eyes surveyed the scene.

Andrew's baby toys were all over the floor. She, herself, had tripped over one earlier. Stephanie's eyes narrowed slightly when she looked at her daughter. Aurora was biting her bottom lip and looked nervous.

"Aurora, it's okay, honey. Andrew is going to be okay." She assured her three year old before giving her son a kiss on his cheek. He was starting to calm down a little.

"Maybe you should take him into the kitchen and put some ice on it so it doesn't bruise too bad." Levesque suggested watching her give the baby affection.

"Yeah, I need to, but he's not going to be happy." commented Stephanie as she left the living room to follow her former husband's advice.

"Hey, that my booboo bunny, Mommy!" Aurora whined the moment she and her father entered the kitchen and saw Steph remove the frozen block with the pink plush bunny around it from the freezer.

"Shhh, don't worry about it." Paul whispered to his daughter while holding a finger up to his mouth.

"Where's Cathy?" Stephanie asked aloud, finally noticing that her hired nanny was missing in action.

"She remembered that she needed to drop a prescription off at the pharmacy. I told her I'd watch the kids for her." Levesque explained looking on while Steph began to fight to control her son since he did not want the cold on his bump.

"Here, why don't I take him and you can put it on his head." He then offered approaching the struggling mother.

"Thank you." Stephanie muttered before handing over the child to her ex.

Immediately, Andrew began to cry and fight against Paul's attempt to hold him still. The fact that Levesque was a muscular man with a great amount of strength in his grip, made Andy scream with rage since he wasn't able to move away from the cold at all.

"It's okay, honey. Mommy loves you." Steph gushed, her heart was breaking for her little man.

Aurora was overcome with jealousy as she watched not one but both of her parents giving all their attention to baby Andy. What about her? Wasn't her daddy suppose to be visiting with her? Desperate to garner attention, the three year old ran back into the living room, picked up her drawing, and ran back into the kitchen.

"Mommy! Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!"Aurora Rose yelled trying to be heard over Andrew Vincent's screaming. She wanted her mom to see the picture she had drawn for her.

Stephanie's head felt like it was about to explode. Between both of her children screaming, to the unrelenting stress she was feeling, she started to feel her self control slipping away.

"Aurora, just stop! I can't take it anymore, just stop! What do you want? What?" Stephanie snapped out causing both children to fall quiet.

"I maked this for you..." Aurora muttered with her pink lip protruding out. Her beautiful eyes sparkling with tears as she held up her drawing of her mother that was suppose to make her mother feel better.

And then it was Steph who burst into tears. She couldn't believe that she had snapped out at her own child. What kind of a mother did that? All her baby girl wanted to do was give her a drawing. At that moment, she hated herself as a mother.

Levesque was wide eyed. He couldn't believe how emotional Stephanie was being. She had gone from screaming to crying in a matter of seconds. Something definitely had to be wrong.

"I'm sorry..." Steph whispered to her child through her tears.

She then approached the kitchen sink and threw the booboo bunny into it. Then she leaned against the counter top and started sobbing.

"Mommy? Daddy, why Mommy cry?" Aurora Rose asked as she started to get worried.

"Come on sweetie, I need to talk to Mommy for a little while, I want you to stay in here and play with your toys." Paul told his daughter as he led her into the living room with Andrew still in his arms.

Aurora was still looking up at him like she wanted an answer to her question. She did what her father told her though. Before leaving his daughter in the living room, Levesque deposited the one year old into his playpen.

Paul scratched his beard with his hand while he slowly began to make his way across the kitchen to his ex-wife. He was trying to figure out what he should say. Did she even want him to try and comfort her? He wanted to, but he wasn't sure if she would let him.

Without saying a word, he gently placed his hand on the middle of her back. Once it was there for a few seconds, and she didn't move away from his touch, he began to gently rub his hand up and down her shirt. He then closed the space between them, coming up behind her. He hated seeing her in obvious pain, especially when he didn't know what the cause of it was.

"What's the matter, Steph?" He asked in a meek voice.

"What isn't the matter? I've been trying so hard to hold my life together! To try and be strong for me and my kids! I find out today at work that everyone's been talking about my marriage behind my back! They're spreading ugly rumors that Kurt's cheating!" Steph cried letting her guts spill out to her ex.

"You mean you didn't already know about the rumor about Kurt and Candice?" Paul inquired, narrowing his hazel eyes. He was sure she had already known about all of it since according to Aurora, she had kicked the Olympic Wonder out of the house. He had assumed that the affair was the main cause of that.

"No, but you did?" Steph quickly retorted as she whipped around to look him in the eyes.

"Yeah, everyone's been talking about it." Levesque muttered. His eyes darted away from hers nervously.

"And you didn't think to tell me?"

Paul let out an exasperated laugh as he put his hand up in the air. He couldn't believe that she was now questioning why he hadn't come to her with all the details of what was being said.

"I told you a number of times in the past that people were saying that Candice had a thing for Angle. As I recall, you basically told me that you didn't want to hear it. Anytime I tried to drop hints to you that I was here for you if you needed to talk, you'd brush me off." Paul finally told her.

"And if I did tell you that the word in the company was that that diva was having his kid, what would that get me, Steph, gratitude? No, it would have landed me a slap to the face. You know it, and I know it." He added.

"I don't want to believe it...I can't. I just refuse to believe that this could all happen to me again. People are so damn hurtful spreading gossip, not caring who gets hurt. I don't deserve it. I just want to be happily married, raise my children, and help my company grow. I don't think that's too much to ask." Stephanie wept, bearing her soul aloud. She brought her hands up to her face and cried harder into them.

"It's okay, come here. It's not your fault. And you're right, that's not too much to ask for." Paul agreed with her in a whisper as he step forward and pulled her into a hug.

Levesque couldn't help but feel a surge of contentment when he felt her grab hold of him, wrapping her arms around his neck, accepting his hug. Her face was buried in his t-shirt, right at his broad shoulder. He could hear her muffled cries while he rubbed the small of her back with both his hands. Her perfume entered his nostrils each time he breathed in deep. He wanted to tell her right then and there that even though he screwed up in the past, he wanted to be the one to give her all those things she wanted: a wonderful marriage, more children, a happy life.

"Steph?" Paul whispered in her ear. He then gave her cheek a tender kiss before letting go of their embrace.

His hands, he then brought to either side of her jaw line, lifting her head up so that he could look into her sparkling blue eyes before he said whatever it was he was finally going to say to her. She looked up at him, giving him her full undivided attention. This was it. This was his moment to tell her how he was still very much in love with her.

"Steph, I..." He began but then paused, he was trying to figure out how exactly he wanted to say it. For over a year, he had fantasized about this very moment. It had happened over and over again in his head, but now, he just didn't know the right way to spit it out.

Stephanie trembled under his touch. She felt like she was on tenterhooks. She was wondering what bombshell he now was going to drop on her. She had enough stress today to last her a lifetime. It was such an awkward silence after he trailed off. It added the overwhelming anxiety she was being plagued with.

Fuck it, there was no words for how he felt about her. In one quick motion, Paul leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. His body literally vibrated from the sheer ecstasy of once again having his lips on hers; knowing that she was fully awake and knew what was going on. This kiss was real, it was him and Steph. His eyes were closed. The kiss was tender, yet bold, and as quickly as it started, it ended. Stephanie pulled away, while her hand pushed into his chest to quickly separate them. When Levesque opened his eyes, he saw Stephanie staring back at him with her mouth slightly parted. Her eyes were wide, her face still tear stained and now pale, like all the color had been drained from it.

Steph couldn't believe what had just happened. Had she led him on? Was it something she said that made him think that she wanted him to do that? Oh God, did he think she was coming on to him because she hugged him back? Stephanie felt like her intestines had seized and formed into a huge knot, pulling hard downward toward her feminine parts.

Before Paul could do or say anything else to end the awkward nothingness between them, Stephanie moved, walking away from him and out of the kitchen. He turned to watch where she went, and saw her enter the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her.

"Fuck..." Levesque muttered to himself. He shook his head.

Had he just blown it? Did she hate him because he kissed her? Surely if she had not wanted to be kissed, she would have slapped his face right after or would have told him how inappropriate it was of him to kiss a married woman; but she didn't do any of that.

For a moment he thought about going after her, but quickly thought better of it. She clearly needed to be alone. He just wished that she would have said something, anything, before leaving him in the kitchen.

Levesque just stood there in that exact same spot minute after minute. In his mind, he recapped the turn of events, over and over again. He was immediately reanimated when he heard footsteps coming toward the kitchen from the hallway. He turned just in time to see that it was Catherine.

"Thanks for watching the kids. Are they still in the living room?" She asked setting her purse back on the counter top where she had had it before.

Paul said nothing but just nodded and then watched her go in to the living room to tend to the children. He wondered if the return of the nanny would compel Steph to come back out of the bathroom and face him.

And then, after what felt like a few more minutes passed by, the bathroom door slowly opened. Stephanie was silently weeping. Her body was trembling as she slowly walked back into the kitchen with both her hands clutching her abdomen. Seeing her caused Paul's eyebrows to furrow. She looked like she was in pain. He took a few steps toward her, but then immediately stopped dead in his tracks when she spoke aloud:

"I'm bleeding..." She muttered almost breathlessly.

Paul scanned her with his eyes, a bit confused. He didn't see any blood on her. She injured herself? How? Did she fall in the bathroom or something? He hadn't heard anything while she was in there. And then Stephanie said something that completely threw him for a loop:

"I think I'm losing my baby..."


	55. Chapter 55

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-Five

"You've got this, Angle. You just have to keep focused. Eyes on the prize, man." Brock encouraged his friend.

Brock had agreed to take time out of his own training to accompany his buddy to the tryout. Angle was less than five minutes away from trying out for Dana White, president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was damn lucky that Lesnar was able to pull some strings to get him this opportunity. It was taking place in a small mixed martial arts gym in New Jersey a mere day after public tryouts for the Ultimate Fighter were carried out. Dana was taking time out of his busy schedule to scout Kurt's potential personally. This was, perhaps, Angle's only chance to prove himself in the world of MMA.

Kurt, himself, knew how important this tryout fight was. Unfortunately for him, it was hard to keep his mind focused on the task at hand. He couldn't stop thinking about his visit to Tennessee to see two of his children. While he was used to Karen behaving like a total bitch to him, what really caught him off guard was his children's testimony to how far the former Mrs. Angle was taking the whole "Daddy Jeff" thing.

"Karen is asking my kids if they want to legally change their last name to Jarrett. Do you believe that? My son and daughter are asking me why their mother thinks that they shouldn't have my last name anymore. Like it was my idea!" Angle blurted out in a voice that was trembling from his overwhelming level of exasperation.

His grievances, that seem to come completely out of nowhere, caused Lesnar to shake his head. He couldn't believe that Kurt was busy thinking about his family drama instead of his MMA tryout. First, he was preoccupied with his separation from Stephanie, and now he was babbling about his ex-wife drama.

"Why the hell are you thinking about that now? You're about to walk out of this locker room and prove that you're one of the baddest men on the planet; that you're still a legit athlete even after going into pro wrestling and marrying the owner's daughter. Nothing else should matter to you right now. Use that fire to go out there and kick your opponent's ass and show Dana what you're made of." Lesnar lectured doing his best to refocus Angle to the task at hand.

Kurt slowly nodded his head letting out a long exhale. He knew that he wasn't in the right frame of mind for the tryout. But could Brock really blame him? His personal life was in shambles. If things ended up going well in the tryout today, he would be faced with a career decision that would surely effect his marriage that was already dangling by a thread.

"Mr. Angle, Dana is ready for you. Come on out to the cage." The owner of the local gym announced, popping his head into the locker room.

"All right, man, you heard him. It's go time!" exclaimed Lesnar as he quickly clapped his hands together as his buddy got up from his seat on the locker room bench.

Brock gave his friend a swift pat on the back as he followed him out of the locker room. The whole way down the hallway, he continued to give Kurt a pep talk about his qualifications for the sport. And then, Angle stopped just before the end of the corridor and turned back around.

"Where are you going? Come on." Brock said pointing in the direction of the cage.

"Tell Dana that I'll be there in a minute. I forgot my mouth guard in the locker room." Angle told his comrade while he traveled back the way he came before Lesnar could suggest that he go back for it instead.

When Kurt reentered the locker room, he was immediately drawn to the muffled sound of his cell phone ringtone going off to signal that he had an incoming call. With a quick stride, he made his way over to his duffle bag and reached in for the vibrating device. Since it had already been ringing when he came into the room, Angle quickly answered it without even bothering to look at the id.

"Hello?"

"Kurt, it's Linda. I'm glad I got a hold of you. Stephanie's just been admitted to the hospital." Mrs. McMahon informed her son-in-law, getting right to the point of her call. Despite the fact that he and her daughter were currently separated, she knew that he had a right to know the news about his wife.

"What? Is she okay? Is it the baby?" Angle immediately asked back, his voice sounding a bit panicked. Kurt's blue eyes were wide with fear, he plopped back down on the locker room bench and waited for Linda to elaborate.

"She thinks that she's miscarrying. I'm on my way over there now. We won't know for sure until she's seen by a doctor." Linda explained getting a bit tearful.

Angle felt like he had just been blindsided by the untimely news about his wife. Their tiny baby's life was in jeopardy and he was over two hours away not to mention at a MMA tryout. God, if he wouldn't have forgotten and come back for his mouth guard, he would have missed the urgent call. He already felt guilty enough.

"Jesus Christ, I'll be there as soon as I can. I'm on my way now...Bye." Kurt stammered before ending the phone call. He sprung to his feet, throwing his cell phone in his duffle bag. Angle quickly grabbed his Adidas track pants and put them on right over his fighting shorts. He wasn't wasting anytime by completely changing out of his fight attire.

There was no time for him to run out and tell Brock the new developments. He just needed to get out of there and get back to Connecticut. Angle didn't even care if his wife wanted him there. He owed it to her to be there for her and their baby. The thought of her going through a heart wrenching miscarriage without him by her side killed him.

"What the hell are you doing?" Lesnar asked the minute he came into the locker room and caught sight of Kurt putting his shirt back on. He had come back to find out what was taking Angle so long to get out to the cage.

"I'm leaving, my mother-in-law just called me. Stephanie's in the hospital, she thinks that she's losing the baby." Angle told Brock while he quickly put his socks and sneakers on.

"You're leaving right now? You're this close to getting a contract!" Brock exclaimed giving his friend a look like he was nuts for wanting to skip out on Dana White.

Kurt didn't reply to Lesnar's inquiry. He simply finished getting dressed before going to grab his duffle bag from the locker.

"Angle, come on! It's not like this kind of an opportunity is going to come along again! If you blow Dana White off, you're going to ruin your chances! The tryout won't even take an hour, man! Just get it done and then you can get back home to Steph!" Brock told him, continuing to be frustrated by his buddy's decision to leave.

"How the hell do you expect me to fight a match when I know that my wife is at the hospital losing our child? What if it was Rena, Brock? Huh? Dana's just gonna have to understand, and if he doesn't, then fuck him!" Angle finally retorted as he swung his bag over his shoulder and began to walk out of the locker room.

"Don't be like that, Kurt! Don't you see that this is a prime example of you putting what you want on hold because of Stephanie? She wanted space, remember? You don't even know if she wants you there! You deserve this try out, Kurt! Take the opportunity and then go to your wife. You've got to make the right choice!" Brock commanded, blocking his friend's stride.

Angle's eyes pierced through the man that he thought was one of his best friends for a number of years now. The same friend who was now standing between him and his travel back to his wife. He couldn't believe that Lesnar would even imply that Stephanie's miscarriage was an instance where she was "holding him back". Brock was being stupid, and Angle knew damn well that if it was him and Rena was in the hospital, it would have been a different story.

"I _am_ making the right choice. I choose Stephanie." Kurt finally stated in a voice that was full of the utmost sincerity. With that said, Angle circumvented right around Lesnar and forcefully opened the locker room door, letting it slam shut behind him after he exited.

* * *

Upon Paul bringing Stephanie to Greenwich Hospital, she had been admitted and transferred to the third floor, maternity. It had been Steph's request for her to seek medical treatment, while he waited in the maternity lounge and call her mother like his ex had ask him to.

Since Stephanie hadn't asked for him to be by her side at the hospital, there was nothing for him to do but play the waiting game in the lounge. He sat hunched over on a green plush couch with his face in his hands. It all seemed surreal to him. Was he really here now? Had Steph really been pregnant with another kid, and was no losing it? It didn't seem real. Other than the fact that she was sick with a stomach bug recently, she had dropped no hint that her and Angle were having yet another kid. "Were" was the key word. If Steph was indeed right about her body, she was having her second miscarriage. The first one being their second child together.

Levesque let himself sigh sitting back on the sofa. He began to think about the last time he had taken Stephanie to the hospital. While they had redecorated since then, he could tell it was the exact same waiting room he had been stuck sitting in. Paul could even remember the mantra he had said to himself over and over again as he had waited to hear any news about his then wife:

_Please let her be okay and forgive me. Please let her be okay and forgive me. God I went too far and I'm sorry._

A lot of good all that hoping and praying had done for him last time. While Stephanie had fully recovered, their tiny unborn child had perished, and with it, an irreparable crack had formed in their once solid marriage that destroyed them from the foundation up. She had blamed the loss of their child on him. Oh God, what if she blamed him for this one too? He did, after all, give her a kiss that she never asked him for right before she started to miscarry. Would she figure him to be the cause of it?

As selfish as it seemed, Paul actually knew that he wished for only Stephanie to make it through this ordeal. He honestly didn't want her to have yet another baby by Kurt Angle. It had been hard enough for him to accept Andrew Vincent as hers. He didn't know if he would be able to do that again with yet another kid. He wanted to be the one to give Stephy another baby. Giving Aurora a little brother or sister would be like creating a new beginning for their little family.

But what was the current state of the Angle marriage? From what his ex-wife had told him in her kitchen, she was really pissed about the rumors about Kurt and Candice. With Angle already out of the house, was that enough to have him out permanently? He hoped so. Angle had his one shot to make his marriage work with Steph, and he blew it. One chance was all Levesque had and when it was gone, so was Stephanie. The same should be true for Angle.

"Thank you so much, Paul, for bringing her here and calling me." Linda told him the moment she arrived in the lounge. Before he could even stand up to great her, Mrs. McMahon bent down and gave him a quick hug. She genuinely seemed grateful.

"It's no problem. I would have never left her to deal with this on her own." He replied shrugging off the idea that he had done anything that was beyond what he would expect himself to do for the woman he loved.

"Well, I'm going to go see Steph and see what the doctor says. Thanks again, Paul. I appreciate you waiting until I got here." Linda quickly added with a flash of a smile before she left him to go up to the triage desk to ask to be directed to her daughter's hospital room.

Levesque sat there silently watching as the nurse spoke to his former mother-in-law. He was hoping that he would be able to overhear the room number Steph was in, but alas, the nurse was going to lead Linda there herself to the other wing of the maternity ward.

He wanted to follow them more than anything. Better yet, he had wanted his ex mother-in-law, the one member of Steph's family who he could ever consider an ally, to invite him to go with her to see Stephanie. She hadn't and now he was again left to wait there in the lounge. He was quick to contemplate lying to the nurse about being Stephanie's current husband so that he could go to her, but then he remembered how the hospital was big on photo identification. It was no use. Paul would have to wait there and hope that his former wife would ask to see him. He wasn't going home until he got to see her.

* * *

It took Kurt just over two hours to arrive at Greenwich hospital. Even though his travel was a straight shot up Interstate 95, it felt like one of the longest car rides of his life. He had driven a rental car, since his Escalade was still sitting in long term parking at Bradley International Airport. Leaving the rented car in the Helmsley medical building's parking garage, Angle raced up the stairs to the hospital's atrium lobby.

"I need to find my wife, she was admitted here earlier today, her name is Stephanie McMahon-Angle." He told the registrar in voice that was full of haste.

"Okay, I'll need to see your license or some other form of identification, sir."

"Yeah, sure..." He muttered patting himself on the butt to feel which pocket he had stuck his wallet in, before he remembered that he was in his track pants that only had two pockets on either side.

He reached in his right pocket and yanked out his money clip that contained his cash and cards. He then removed his license and handed it to the receptionist. The woman looked at it before beginning to type away on her computer keyboard.

"She is up on the third floor in maternity, room 324. The quickest way to get there would be for you to go back to the parking garage elevator, and directly across from it you will see another elevator by the rest rooms, take that one up. Once you get to the third floor, make an immediate left and then another left at the next hallway. You're wife's room will be down that hallway in Maternal-Fetal Medicine." The registrar explained.

Angle muttered a thank you and took off the way that the employee had specified, however, instead of the elevator, he wanted to take the stairs. Without losing a bit of breath, Kurt made it up the flights of stairs like he was Rocky climbing the stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art; his feet moving fast as he skipped steps on his way up. When he reached the third floor, Angle made the two left turns down each hallway. The moment that he got to the Maternal-Fetal Medicine" portion of the corridor, he didn't even need to look at the room numbers because Linda McMahon was coming out of one of them.

"Mom, I'm here. I'm sorry it took me so long but it was a two hour drive from Jersey." Kurt announced the moment he approached his mother-in-law who had yet to turn from the door to face the hallway.

"How is Steph? Please tell me our baby is okay.." He continued after giving Linda a hug before asking about his pregnant wife's welfare.

"The baby's okay, it was what is called a threatened miscarriage. She had some bleeding, which isn't that uncommon within the first twenty weeks. The doctor performed a pelvic exam and he said that her cervix was closed, which shows that she did not miscarry." Mrs. McMahon explained, giving her son-in-law all the details as she knew them.

"Oh thank God!" Kurt exclaimed immediately before doing the sign of the cross and darting his eyes up toward heaven above. He then reached forward and embraced his mother while thanking her for calling him and being there for his wife.

Angle let out a long sigh of relief. He felt all of his muscles relax as he heard the news that his and Stephanie's unborn child was still alive. He didn't know what he would have done if she had lost their second child without him there.

"Can I go in and see her?" He finally asked in a low voice after breaking the hug.

"Yes, but please, whatever you do, don't upset her. She's been through a lot lately. The doctor told me that all the stress could have attributed to the bleeding." warned Mrs. McMahon as she looked directly into Angle's brilliant blue eyes.

"I don't want to upset her, Mom. I just want my family back. I love her so much." Kurt explained looking over at the large wooden door that stood between him and his wife. A decent size window was in the middle of the door, allowing him to see a decent bit of the room, but not his wife.

"I know you do. Go ahead, I'm going to head down to the cafeteria for a cup of coffee. Just tell her how you feel." Linda advised with a nod before leaving so that her daughter and her husband would have time alone to talk.

Once his mother-in-law disappeared down the long hallway, Angle grasped the door handle, pushing down to open it. Silently, he first peeked his head inside the hospital room before entering. There was Stephanie in the hospital bed. She had turned to look in his direction as soon as she heard the door open. Steph was wearing a hospital gown and her face was a bit red and puffy because she had been crying quite a bit.

"Hi Steph." Angle whispered as he maneuvered his body into the room from the small opening he made with the door.

"What are you doing here, Kurt?" She asked him in a flat tone of voice, folding her arms over her chest.

"I came because I was scared for you and the baby. Your mom called me and I got here as fast as I could." He explained moving further into the room to approach his wife.

Leave it to her mother to reach out to her husband. Steph hadn't asked her mom to do that. She didn't need him there. This wasn't the first time she had been in danger of miscarrying with no one but her mom at her side.

Steph took a moment to scan her husband's appearance. He looked more rugged since the last the time she had seen him. His facial hair was fully in as a beard, he looked like he just threw some clothes on and showed up at the hospital.

"Well, you can stop worrying because my baby and I are fine. You didn't have to come. I wouldn't want you to feel obligated like when you married me after you found out I was pregnant with Andrew." Stephanie retorted holding back her tears as she spoke. She was throwing how she felt about his reason for marrying her back in his face.

"I didn't come here because I felt obligated, I came because I love you and our family more than anything else in the world. And Steph, I would have still wanted to make you my wife a year ago regardless if you were pregnant with my child." professed Angle while he walked to the side of the hospital bed where two screens were running simultaneously with vital signs.

"Kurt, I can't do this right now. I need to rest, I almost had a miscarriage. And-"

"And I wish to God that I could have been there for you when it happened." Kurt told her, completely cutting her off.

"Where were you? The kids and I hadn't heard from you in over a week and now you just show up here acting like you've been missing us so much."

"You said you wanted space, Steph. I was trying to honor that. I spent part of my time in Minnesota with Brock, and the other part visiting Kyra and Kody in Tennessee. You have no idea how hard it was for me not to pick up the phone and call you. I didn't because I figured you wouldn't talk to me. You were so adamant that you wanted nothing to do with me at your father's party." Kurt explained holding his hands up in the air like he didn't know what she wanted from him.

"And I didn't. Hell, I'm not even sure that I want to see you now. You have no idea what I've had to deal with on my own. Having morning sickness when you were too busy thinking about yourself, taking care of my two children on my own, and then being treated at work like the newest supermarket tabloid because of a nasty rumor about you!" Steph hollered before she started to cry while thinking about what she had endured in the past few weeks.

"Wait, what are we talking about? What's the rumor?" Kurt asked looking completely confused by what he was hearing.

"Oh, so you have no idea what everyone in the company has been saying about you?" Steph asked back with a bit of attitude. She was having a hard time believing her husband's innocent and clueless act.

"How would I know what they are saying if I'm suspended? What is it?" He pressed on, getting a little annoyed as well.

"Candice Michelle is pregnant, Kurt, and they think it's yours!" She hollered back at him like she was hurling a rock directly at his bald head.

Angle's eyebrows furrowed before he let out a forced laugh. He couldn't believe that people within the company would be spreading a rumor like that. What evidence did they have that he had any kind of a romantic relationship with that diva?

"That's completely crazy. The only time I've ever even spoke to her was when she offered to watch the kids. And I only accepted because I had to work and you weren't there to watch them. I would have let any of the divas do the same thing if they offered. Why would you be so upset by a preposterous rumor like that? You don't believe that I would cheat on you with diva trash, do you?" Angle questioned looking like he was a bit hurt by the prospect of his wife not trusting him.

Stephanie started crying again, bringing her hands to her face. How could she explain to him how terrible it felt to have an employee tell her that rumor. Regardless if she knew whether it was true or not, simply hearing about it was so hurtful.

"I would hope not, but after what Karen said about your marriage with her. I-"

"Karen told you about that to hurt us. Steph, I know that I was unfaithful to Karen during my marriage to her. I own that and don't deny it. When she found out and asked me about it, I was upfront about it. I swear to you on everything I hold sacred: my life, our marriage, our children, and my Olympic gold medal. I want nor have ever wanted anything to do with Candice Michelle. I couldn't imagine being with anyone but you." pledged Kurt as he slowly approached the hospital bed. He was staring at his weeping wife, seeing if his words were having any effect on her.

Stephanie took a deep breath and then let out a sigh. She let her hands fall down to hospital bed before her sparkling tear filled eyes looked back up at him. She looked to be studying his face, trying to determine if he was speaking the truth. His blue eyes were shimmering while a few tears escaped them and rolled down his face. It wasn't the first time he had cried in front of her, it didn't mean that he had really changed.

"I don't know if I can trust what you're telling me. Words are only words, Kurt. What you do is what is most important. You hurt me so badly telling me that I was holding you back from MMA and then tossing your wedding band aside like it meant nothing to you. How could you do that and now stand here telling me how much you love me?" Steph inquired wiping her own tears away with her hand.

Angle took a deep breath as he tried his best to stifle his overwhelming emotions. If he was going to convince his wife that he deserved to be given another chance, he was going to have to speak from his heart, and not rely on his expression of emotion.

"Okay, fine, you want to talk about actions speaking louder than words? Do you know where I was when your mother called me? I was in New Jersey and I was about to try out for Dana White, the president of UFC. It was a one-time shot that I was given thanks to Brock pulling strings. Steph, as soon as your mom called to tell me about you and the baby, I stopped caring about mixed martial arts. I don't care if I ever step foot in the cage; it means nothing if I don't have you and the kids. I don't need to prove myself as an athlete. All I want to do is prove myself as a husband and father. Stephanie, listen to me." Angle said sitting down on the side of his wife's hospital bed. He took her left hand and held it in his before continuing:

"You had every right to throw me out of our home. It wasn't just my fuck up with the DUI. I was a selfish and immature asshole, and I know that now. It's just that I couldn't stand the thought of losing you to your ex. I'm sure you felt the same way when you heard that bullshit rumor about me and Candice." Angle confided drawing connection between the two of them.

"That's true, but-"

"But it's still no excuse for how I acted. You were sick, and I shouldn't have left you to go to RAW. And as far as Paul is concerned, I'm know that I'm just going to have to learn to deal with him. He's Aurora's dad, and he's going to have to be in our lives because of it. I don't want my insecurities to ruin what we have, babe. I love you too much. Please, Steph, give me the chance to show you that I mean every word I'm saying. Let me come home." Kurt pled bringing his free hand to his wife's face to lovingly stroke her cheek.

Stephanie closed her eyes, relishing the feeling of her husband's touch. She could feel his gold wedding band pressing against her skin as he caressed her. His words were still sinking in to her mind. He was telling her everything that she wanted him to; like he had finally seen the light and realized and wanted to fix what she had been so upset about. She could have lost their unborn child today, but she hadn't. Maybe it was a sign from God that their marriage really did have a chance.

When she opened her eyes, Steph raised her right hand and brought it to Kurt's face. She began to caress his jaw line with her hand, feeling his beard under her fingertips. After a few seconds doing this, Angle placed his hand onto hers, and then turned his head so that he could kiss the palm of her hand with his lips.

"I want you to come home." Steph finally whispered through her tears that were now tears of happiness.

The corners of Angle's mouth pulled to form a wide smile. His wife telling him that she wanted him to come back to her and their family was like a unbelievably large weight had been lifted from his heart. He immediately then bent down and brought his lips to hers. Stephanie sighed allowing her husband to pull her into a lip lock. She brought her hands to either side of his face and closed her eyes while he kissed her tenderly.

"Oh, and there's one more thing..." Kurt whispered after breaking the kiss and resting his forehead to hers.

"Hmm?" She voiced before pressing her lips to his again for another quick kiss.

Angle slowly withdrew from his wife's advances and then reached into his left pocket. His face formed a smirk before he pulled something out that was concealed within his large hand. Steph blinked a few times, and waited for him to reveal what he had. And then, when he opened his hand, she smiled wide. Her eyes focused on her beautiful wedding ring shimmering in the palm of her husband's hand.

"You kept it in your pocket?" She asked with a chuckle before wiping away her tears.

"Yeah, I did, every day since we split. I was worried that I'd never get to put it back on your hand." He divulged looking down at the exquisite piece of jewelry that belonged to his equally radiant wife.

"I missed having it there." Steph confessed in a whisper before biting her lip. She then held out her hand for him to put it back on her left ring finger.

Angle took the large diamond ring between his thumb and pointer finger of his left hand. He leaned over and slowly brought the round band to her polished finger and slid it onto it across its length just like he had done when they had married.

Steph trembled with a feeling of overwhelming joy. She held her hand up in front of her, admiring how the huge diamond sparkled. Just like the diamond felt right on her hand, so did her marriage.

* * *

After getting her a cup of coffee in the cafeteria that was on the ground floor of the hospital, Linda traveled back up to the maternity floor the same way that she did when she had first arrived there. The elevator chimed signaling that it had reached the third floor and the doors opened.

"I wish we would have known you wanted some coffee, we have a machine right here in our office." The nurse commented with a smile when she saw Mrs. McMahon walking by with her paper cup.

"Oh, it's fine, I wanted to give my daughter a little privacy anyway. Thank you though." Linda replied.

Hearing the voice of his former mother-in-law made Paul lift his head from the magazine he had been studying for some time now. He had been stuck in that waiting room for what felt like an eternity with no word from either his ex-wife or her mother. Levesque had scanned through each and every magazine on the table in front of him. He had just been ready to give up on getting to see his former wife, when he had heard Linda 's voice.

Paul closed the magazine before placing it back on the table. His hazel eyes focused on Mrs. McMahon as he watched her walk passed the nurses' station and continue down the hallway. He moved quickly, following her before any of the nurses could ask him what his business was going into the maternity ward.

This was his chance to get to see his former wife. In the hours he was waiting to see her, he formulated in his mind what exactly he was going to say to her. It was what he should have told her right after he kissed in her kitchen. He wanted her to know that he was still in love with her, and that he wanted to be the man who would be there for her when she and Angle finally went their separate ways. Levesque would hold her in his muscular arms and comfort her over the loss of her unborn baby, just like he should have done when they had lost their own.

"Linda!" He called out as he saw her starting to slow her pace when she reached one of the hospital rooms.

Linda turned back around and gave him a look that showed how surprised she was to see him. She waited until Paul closed the distance between them before she spoke.

"You're still here, Paul? I thought you left when I arrived."

"No, I was waiting for an update. I thought you knew that. How is she? I was worried about how she would take another miscarriage." Paul inquired in a low voice.

"Oh, she and the baby are fine. I'm so sorry that you were out there waiting for so long. If I would have known you were still here, I would have told you sooner."

Paul felt a measure of frustration build up inside of him. With the way that Stephanie had behaved on the way to the hospital, he had been sure that she would have lost Angle's kid. It was what the Olympic Jackass deserved for all of the bullshit he had pulled over the last few weeks. Levesque firmly believed that he deserved to be with Steph more than Kurt. He was the one who cared enough to check in on her and the children today. If it wasn't for him being there, she probably would have lost the damn baby. Steph must know that. She had to see how important she was to him.

"Can you just give me a few minutes to talk with her?" Levesque requested not bothering to even respond to the news about Steph and the baby's welfare.

"I don't know if-" Mrs. McMahon started to say in an attempt to try and deter him from wanting to go in the room.

"It will only be a few minutes, please." He pressed on.

"Well, I did have some phone calls I needed to make. Go ahead, I'll be back in a few minutes." Linda finally said, relenting to her former son-in-law's request.

Paul smiled wide and moved aside so that Linda didn't have to maneuver around him to walk back down the hallway. He then took a minute run his hands over the top of his head, making sure his hair was smoothly pulled back in his signature neat ponytail. Then, he stepped up to the door of room 324. Seeing the thick glass window, he decided to try and get a look at her before entering. Levesque wanted to see what her current emotional state was. His own demeanor would depend on if she was in good spirits or not.

He chewed his gum rapidly as he almost pressed his large nose into the glass while trying his best to see the hospital bed in the room. He shifted all his weight on his left foot and cocked his head fully to the side in order to see the other side of the room.

"What the fuck..." He muttered when he saw Angle's bald head and torso blocking his view of Stephanie.

Angle was there? When did this happen? Paul's heart felt like someone pierced it with a dagger when he saw both of Stephanie's hands rubbing his back and his eyes focused on her wedding ring that was back on her left hand. It hadn't been there earlier today. Paul shook with anger when Angle shifted his position a bit and the side of Stephanie's face came into his view. Her eyes were closed and her head was pivoting with Angle's rhythm while she kissed him back. It was a sickening sight; one that he never saw coming. Their child surviving had to have brought them back together.

Levesque let out all of his breath from his lungs while his eyes continued to fixate on the woman he loved making out with the man he hated. All he could think about was bursting in there and jumping Angle before he even had a chance to defend himself. He would pummel that Olympic cock sucker until security came to pull him off of him. Unfortunately, he couldn't do that. Paul knew full well that if he did that in front of Stephanie, she would be the one to call security on him. There was nothing he could do. He hadn't just missed his chance to speak his heart to Stephanie; Angle had taken it away from him.


	56. Chapter 56

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-Six

Paul felt like his entire world was ending. His hazel eyes remained fixated on Mr. and Mrs. Angle through the window. They carried on their romantic kiss, completely oblivious to the fact that he was observing them. While every muscle in his arm flexed in response to his overwhelming hatred for Kurt Angle, his bottom lip trembled accompanying the sadness he felt seeing the woman he loved loving another.

It was like he had been standing at that door forever; like time stood still and it was just tunnel vision peering in at the two lovers reuniting. As much as he hated the sight, he was sucked into it, like a moth to a deadly flame. He had to force himself to look away. Levesque took a sharp breath and then took a step back from the hospital door. Paul then rested his creased forehead against the wall opposite his ex-wife's room.

He was taking a moment to regroup and keep himself in check. The last thing he wanted to do was make a scene. It was so hard for him not to get emotional. Up until now, things had seemed to be going well with him and Steph. They were finally starting to co-exist as parents and they were actually able to spend time with their daughter together. He now feared that with Angle coming back into the picture, he was going to lose all progress they had made. What would happen with his baby girl? Would he lose time with his child because of Kurt?

Shit, he was already making a spectacle of himself standing there in the hallway. Levesque needed to leave. He obviously wasn't wanted there. Without saying a word to anyone, Paul left the maternity ward and then the hospital building. There was only one thing he could think to do now, and he was going to do it.

* * *

Kurt was lying on the edge of his wife's hospital bed while snuggling to her. Even though it was a mere two weeks since they had been together, for him, it felt like a lifetime apart.

"I can't wait until we can feel him kick." whispered Angle with sentiment as he lovingly massaged his hand across his wife's abdomen.

"Him?" Steph replied raising a single thin eyebrow in response to his confidence that she was pregnant with yet another boy.

"It could be a baby girl, you know." She then added with a chuckle while placing her hand on top of his.

"Well, it's possible, but ah, I'm willing to bet my Olympic Gold medal that it's a boy." answered back Kurt with a childish smirk.

"Oh my God, Kurt, you and your gold medal. If this baby turns out to be a girl, then you can't talk about that damn medal or the Olympics for an entire year. Do we have a deal?" joked Stephanie right after she burst out into laughter.

"You're on, babe. That's how confident I am!" Angle accepted with enthusiasm before he began to tickle his wife causing her to laugh even more.

Steph moved quickly and grabbed hold of Kurt's hands to stop him from tickling her which compelled him to lean in and give her a quick kiss on the lips.

"In all seriousness though, I don't care if the baby is a boy or a girl, I just want the baby to be healthy. I want to be here for you through this whole pregnancy, like I should have been for Andrew." Angle professed in a low voice.

His words of conviction caused Stephanie to smile wide. She brought her hands to his bearded face before she spoke her reply.

"That's what I want too." She whispered back before pulling him toward her for a passionate kiss.

The sound of the hospital room door opening caused the couple to abruptly break their kiss and look to see who was entering. It was Linda coming in to check on her daughter. She looked to be a little surprised to see Kurt and her daughter kissing. It was obvious that they had worked out their problems and had reconciled.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt you two. I just wanted to ask Stephanie if she was hungry and wanted me to go out and get her something to eat." Mrs. McMahon explained looking a little awkward and embarrassed for walking in on her daughter and son-in-law.

"Thank you, Mom, but no. The nurse came in a few moments ago and told me that I'm being discharged. The doctor said that I could go home tonight but he wants me to take it easy for the next few days, no stress whatsoever." stated Steph repeating back what the nurse had told her.

"I can't wait to go home and see the kids. I missed them like crazy." Kurt immediately said before narrowing his eyes and looking at first his wife and then his mother-in-law before speaking again.

"Steph, if both you and your mother are here, who's watching the kids?"

With all the excitement the day had brought with the fear of his wife losing their new baby, to the two of them getting back together, Angle hadn't once thought about where Aurora and Andrew were with their mother in the hospital. Usually, it was Linda who would take the children in the event of such a crisis. Who was looking after them now?

"They're with the nanny." Steph answered back plainly with a small smile that grew when the look on Kurt's face changed to a look of complete confusion. He was so adorable when he was clueless.

"What nanny? Since when do we have a nanny?" Angle then asked with a smile as he waited for his wife to elaborate.

"While you were gone, I took the initiative and hired a full time nanny to watch the children while I'm at the office. Her name is Catherine Scot and she's great. She's been a really big help." Stephanie added giving more information about their new employee.

"I'm sure she's great. She'd have to be to meet your standards of a caretaker for the kids." He chuckled before getting to his feet. Angle then turned back around to look at his wife before continuing.

"I'm going to go get my rental car and pull it up to the front entrance of the hospital for after you get discharged. Sound good, babe?"

"Yeah, sounds like a plan. Thank you, honey."

Angle smiled and nodded before he began to walk out of the hospital room. When he went to walk past Linda, he took the time to thank her again. It was when Kurt thanked Linda for taking Stephanie to the hospital, that Linda's eyes darted over to her daughter. In return, Mrs. McMahon accepted the appreciation graciously and waited for him to leave the room before speaking to her daughter.

"You didn't tell him that Paul took you to the hospital?" Linda asked her daughter. She was surprised that Angle didn't know that Paul had been instrumental in getting Steph to the hospital, especially when he waited to see her for over two hours.

"No, why would I bring up that detail? We just got back together. I don't want to cause any unnecessary drama between those two." Steph explained putting her hand up toward her mother. to show how serious she was about not causing problems between her current and ex-husband.

Her daughter's comment caused Linda to look even more confused by what her daughter had told her. She sat down gently on the edge of the hospital bed before she spoke again.

"Oh, I just thought Kurt would have found out when Paul came in here to check on you. He was very adamant to make sure you were doing all right. I figured that fighting with Kurt would be the last thing on his mind." Mrs. McMahon stated giving her reasoning for being a bit confused.

Stephanie straightened her posture after hearing her mother say that Paul had made an effort to come and see her in the hospital. She had assumed that he had left right after he had dropped her off since he wasn't her husband and didn't accompany her to the maturity floor.

"Are you sure, Mom? I didn't see Paul at all since he drove me here."

"I'm certain. Even I was surprised to find out that he waited over two hours before tracking me down to your hospital room and asked that I'd give him a moment to speak with you. It was right after I went to get some coffee. I haven't seen him since." Linda told her daughter.

Steph's eyes darted away from her mother's gaze. She thought back to the timeline of events that had transpired in the last hour. Her mother had left for coffee not long before Kurt had shown up at her hospital room. If Paul came over then...

Her blue eyes tracked over to the hospital room door where they focused on the wide window. Was it possible that Paul had shown up to check on her and saw her and her husband? There had been a lot of affection exchanged between her and Kurt. Perhaps Levesque didn't feel comfortable interrupting. That had to be awkward as hell for him after waiting so long in the lounge.

"Well, I didn't see him at all. Perhaps he found out that Kurt was already there to take care of me so he left before it got too late into the evening." Steph finally offered. It was the nicest way she could say what she thought really did happen.

"You're probably right. Do you need help getting changed back into your clothing? It's folded on the counter top over there." Mrs. McMahon asked, ready to graciously help her daughter in any way she could.

"No, thanks, Mom. I think I can dress myself." Steph chuckled before she swung her legs over the side of the hospital bed.

She was more than ready to go home. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought she had spent the entire day in Greenwich Hospital. Her three year old daughter was probably wondering where her mommy was. In her rush to seek medical attention, she hadn't given her little girl an adequate explanation of where she was going and how long she would be gone. And poor Cathy was stuck with watching both Andrew and Aurora the rest of the day. It was definitely overtime for her hours as a nanny. Steph couldn't wait to get home and relieve her.

Kurt was waiting with the rental car at the hospital's main entrance just like he had promised her he would be. Linda had been the doting parent and had stayed by her daughter's side during the hospital discharge process and then the walk outside to meet up with Angle. Steph was quite insistent that she was fine to get herself into the passenger seat of the rental car without either her mother or husband helping her. Despite what they must have thought, the threatened miscarriage had done nothing to effect her use of her arms and legs.

"Try to get some rest, sweetheart. It will be good for you and the baby." Mrs. McMahon advised her daughter before closing the passenger door once Steph was inside the automobile.

"She will, Mom. I'm going to wait on her hand and foot for the next few days. Thanks again for everything." Angle told his mother-in-law giving her a quick hug and peck on the cheek before making his way over to the driver side door of the rental.

"Drive carefully!" Linda called out the moment after she heard the engine turn over. She then gave her daughter a wave as the car slowly pulled away.

* * *

"It's so good to be home..." Angle commented aloud through an exhale.

Pressing down on the break, he put the car into park and then got out in his driveway. Steph's eyes followed her husband. She watched him walk over to the keypad on the side of their garage door. Being that he was in a rental car, he had no remote access to open the garage door. The headlights of the car illuminated him against the darkness of the night. Steph blinked her eyes a few times noticing a few droplets of rain fall onto the car's windshield signaling the possible start of a nighttime summer shower.

Stephanie had to agree. She loved the idea of having her husband back home with her and the children. They could go back to being a family again; that was so much easier and better for her and the children than her struggling with the stress of a single mother. Besides, she missed her man. She had missed waking up next to him every morning. She missed laughing at him just being his goofball self. The man could make her laugh even when he wasn't trying to. He was her best friend and the best lover she ever had; an untamed beast in not just the wrestling ring but the bedroom as well. Was he without flaws? Hell no, but the important thing was that he was willing to acknowledge his short comings and try and work on them. How many other men were willing to do that?

"Looks like we got home just in time, babe." Kurt commented the moment he returned to his driver seat and closed the door.

The sound of the car door slamming shut marked the moment that the rain started to pick up almost like it had done so on cue. Steph let out a chuckle looking around the interior of the car as she took a minute to marvel how quickly it began to storm.

"Jeez, you timed that perfectly."

"I know, right?" Angle chuckled.

"I don't really like this car, honey, it's a two door with hardly any backseat for the kids. When are you getting your Escalade back?"

"Tomorrow, I'm going to drive the hour to Bradley International. It's been sitting in long term parking for over two weeks now." Angle replied as he drove the car into his side of the garage where his Cadillac was usually stored.

"Wait until you see what they're going to charge you for parking it there for that long." Stephanie commented back unbuckling her seatbelt before he even shut the car off.

Seeing that his wife was already getting ready to go inside the house, Kurt quickly shut off the engine, undid his safety belt, and got out of the car. Steph gave him a confused look when he ran to her side of the automobile and opened her door before she was able to do it herself.

"And they said chivalry was dead..." Stephanie chuckled when she allowed her husband to then take her by the hand and help her get out of the car.

Once his wife was standing next to him in the garage, he closed the passenger door and then ran up the few steps to the door that connected the garage to the rest of their home.

"Are you going to be doing this a lot? I mean, not that I'm complaining, but you're just overdoing it a little." She then said with a smile as she met him at the open door. "Doing everyday tasks is not going to make me miscarry. I just have to avoid any kind of stress."

"That's what I'm trying to do for you, Steph. I'm treating my Billion Dollar Princess like she's my Olympic Queen. Expect me to take care of the kids, with the help of the new nanny of course, and serve you meals in bed." He told her with a sweet smile that could give her a toothache.

Steph rolled her eyes and let out a strong burst of laughter. He really knew how to turn on the charm. She couldn't help but wonder if all this sucking up he was doing was really because of his fear that she might lose their baby, or because he was just so happy to be back in her good graces and their home.

"I hope you aren't expecting make up sex tonight, Kurt, because that's one thing that's off limits for the next week." Stephanie whispered back to him in her best low seductive voice while leaning in close to him.

Her sultry advances caused the left corner of Angle's mouth to pull taunt forming a smirk. He raised his eyebrows once and gave her a wink before replying.

"There's a lot we can do that doesn't involve intercourse." He told her in a whisper before biting his bottom lip. He brought his hand to her stomach, and letting it slide down to her lower half, right between her legs.

Steph let out a soft moan before she reached down and grabbed his large hand with hers, peeling it away from her body. She smiled as he then placed his hand on his own hard chest before opening her mouth to speak.

"Kurt, darling, that's the last thing on my mind after the day I've had." She chuckled in a still somewhat sexy tone of voice.

"Oh my God, you're such a tease. If your new nanny wasn't here with the kids, and you weren't in your delicate state, you'd be getting bent over that kitchen counter again." He replied in a laugh after letting out a long exhale to show his sexual frustration.

"You wish..." She replied with a naughty smile over her shoulder as she walked further into the house.

No lights were on in the kitchen nor the hallways leading from it into the rest of the home. Without even having to think about it, Steph sat her purse down in the usual place before her and Kurt ventured farther into their house. It was the distant sound of the television in the living room that they followed to find Catherine.

"Hi, so sorry that I kept you here so late." Stephanie said aloud the minute she entered the living room and saw the nanny sitting on the sofa.

"Hi, oh don't worry about it, I'm just relieved that you're okay." said Cathy with a smile before she noticed Kurt standing next to his wife. "Is this the man of the house?"

"Oh, yes, this is Kurt, my husband. Kurt, this is Catherine Scot, our new nanny." Stephanie said quickly, forgetting that she had not introduced her children's caretaker to her spouse.

"Hey, how you doing, Ms. Scot." Angle asked extending his hand for a handshake.

"Please, call me Cathy. I knew you were Mr. Angle the moment I saw you. Your little son is the spitting image of you. It's truly uncanny." She told him accepting his handshake.

"Yeah, I hear that a lot. Thank you."

"Are both of the kids asleep?" Stephanie asked after scanning the room for either of her two children.

"Andrew is asleep in his nursery, and Aurora left almost an hour ago. Her father dropped by and picked her up"

"Oh really? He came by and took her home with him?" Steph asked making sure that she had indeed heard correctly. She folded her arms and waited for the nanny to explain.

"Well yes, I figured you were fine with it since he was suppose to take her earlier today. He asked me to put some clothing in an overnight bag for her and away they went. Why, is there a problem?"

Was there a problem? Steph had to take a few seconds to ask herself that. She was a bit surprised that he had decided to take Aurora overnight anyway after she had been admitted to the hospital. But why not? He was, after all, Aurora Rose's father and had every right to spend time with his child. Still, there was a part of Stephanie that was expecting her little girl home waiting for her, even if she was fast asleep in her bed, safe and sound.

"Oh, no, there's no problem." She finally answered back. "I know that it's getting late. You can go ahead and take off. It's starting to really pour out there, so be careful driving home."

"Do you need an umbrella?" Angle then offered chiming in right after his wife.

"No, thank you, I have a small one in my purse. Have a good night. I'll see you at normal time tomorrow morning?"

"Oh, you can come a little later in the morning if you'd like. Now that Kurt's home, there's no rush for you to get here that early. How does ten sound?"

"That sounds fine. I'll see you then." replied Cathy with a nod before leaving.

"I should call Paul and see how Aurora is doing." Steph immediately told Kurt after the nanny had left.

"Go ahead if you think you need to." Angle replied with a shrug of his shoulders before he started to walk out of the living room.

"Where are you going? You aren't going to bed already, are you?" Stephanie asked noticing his departure out of the corner of her eye.

"I'm going to sneak into the nursery and see my son. I missed the little guy." He admitted.

"You better not wake him up or it will be your responsibility to get him back to sleep." Stephanie warned him before picking up her cordless phone from its cradle on the coffee table.

Without even taking the time to find Paul's cell number under the programmed phone directory, she dialed in the numbers manually and brought the phone to her ear. Patiently she began to wait as the phone rang and rang.

"Answer your phone, Paul..." She muttered aloud while waiting for him to pick up.

"Hi this is Paul, I'm not available right now. Leave your name, number, and a brief message, and I'll get back to you as soon as I can." The recording played before a obnoxious beep.

"Uh, hi Paul, it's Steph. I just got home from the hospital and found out that you came and got Aurora. I was just calling to check on her. Please tell her that Mommy is okay and that I love her." Steph said into the phone with her voice trembling a little because of the awkwardness of saying what she had to say via voicemail.

"Um, I also wanted to thank you for all you did for me today. Mom told me that you stayed in the waiting room for a long while after you got me there because you were worried. And I-I really appreciate that. I'm sorry that I didn't get to see you there, but I was pretty overwhelmed. Uh okay, this is not a brief message at all, sorry. I guess I'll just see you tomorrow when you drop Aurora off before you go to SmackDown. Have a good night, bye."

* * *

"Was that your celly phone, Daddy?" Aurora asked several seconds after her father's cell phone finished playing it's ringtone.

"Yeah, it was."

She had been so engrossed in her playtime with all her toys at her daddy's house that she hadn't really reacted to the sound of the phone going off the minute it happened. Paul had had his cell phone sitting right next to him where he sat on his daughter's bed. He had leaned over with his face in his hands while listening to the sound of his three year old daughter playing. The ringtone only made him briefly glance at his call screen long enough to see that it was his ex-wife calling. He made no effort to move from his position.

"You not say hi to who call you?" She then asked looking up at her father with her head cocked slightly to the side. She was studying him.

"No, they'll leave a message." He told his daughter giving his well trimmed beard a scratch with his hand.

"Oh, okay, you come pway wif me now?" She then asked holding up the two small stuffed animals that she had been playing with.

Paul let a heavy breath out causing his hard chest to contract. His hazel eyes fixated on his cell phone call screen as it began to flash green and displayed the icon to show that he had a new voice message.

"Daddy?" Aurora asked again thinking that her father hadn't heard her the first time. He looked like he wasn't listening to her at all. She batted her little eyes a few times before getting to her feet.

"Daddy..." She said again moving across her bedroom to close the distance between her and her father.

Levesque couldn't bring himself to reply to his child. His daughter's voice sounded so angelic when she called to him. Ever since he had picked her up, he had been stuffing his emotions down within himself. He didn't want his little girl to see how much he was hurting inside. He had even evaded her questions about her mother's welfare when she asked.

Paul closed his eyes when his daughter approached him. He feared just looking at his beautiful child would make all his sadness about Stephanie come to the surface since she looked so much like her mother. And then he felt her. The soft touch of his little girl's hand grabbed his. At that moment, he couldn't help it. The tears began to flow freely from his eyes.

Paul breathed in deep and tried his best to suck it up. He kept telling himself that he wasn't going to do this with Aurora Rose standing right there. Leaning forward, he wiped away the remaining tears on his face with his hand.

"Daddy, what wong?" Aurora asked beginning to sound a bit upset herself both because she was seeing her daddy cry right in front of her and because he wasn't answering her inquiry.

How could he even begin to answer his three year old daughter's question. What wasn't wrong? He had been so close to exposing to his ex-wife how much he still loved her, only to be completely shut out with the return of Kurt Angle back into her life. How could he explain to his daughter the agony he felt in his heart when he thought of Stephanie having yet another child by Angle?

"Daddy?" He heard her say again and this time felt her small palm cup his cheek.

Levesque finally opened his eyes to see his little girl's angel eyes shimmering back at him. They were wide with fear and uncertainty. Her little pink bottom lip poked outward from her mouth and she began to bite down on it slightly. Instead of bringing himself to say a word, Levesque leaned forward and scooped his child up into his arms for an embrace.

With his three year old in his arms, Paul heard himself let out a small whimper. He slowly began to rock back forth, relishing having her there. She was the only solace he had. Tears began to stream down his face yet again. Right now, as it stood, Aurora Rose was the last part of Stephanie Marie McMahon that he had to hold onto; and he didn't want to let go.


	57. Chapter 57

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-Seven

"Let go, Daddy. The hug done now." Aurora whined impatiently as she squirmed in her father's arms.

He had been holding her for a few minutes now, and the child was definitely ready to be let go. Paul did his best to get his emotions in check before he released his three year old. Once Aurora Rose was set back on her feet, he covered his face with his hands and concentrated on his breathing; he was trying to relax. He had to put his ex-wife out of his mind and enjoy his time with his child.

"I know what make you feel better." announced Aurora while making her way around to the other side of her bed.

The little girl approached the pink nightstand by her bed and immediately took hold of the photo album that was sitting on top of it. She had remembered the special picture album that Daddy had shown her the last time she had stayed overnight at his house. She smiled wide looking down at the photo album cover that was a heart shaped picture of her mommy and daddy with her as a baby. This was sure to make her father happy, because it was her favorite thing at his house.

"Come wook at pictures wif me, Daddy." She told him in her sweet voice that sounded a little strained as she used her three year old strength to lift the album and place it on the bed.

Paul twisted his muscular torso to look behind him at what his child was referring to. Great, she wanted to look at his and Stephanie's old photo album again. Of all the days she wanted to look at it again, it had to be tonight? Seeing pictures of him happy with his wife and baby girl wasn't going to make him feel better, but worse. It was only going to remind him of what he had lost. Too bad he couldn't explain that to his three year old.

"I'm not in the mood to look at that right now. Daddy's upset. You just go on ahead and look at it by yourself." He instructed his child, his voice cracking a little because of the lump in his throat.

"But it of you, Mommy, and baby me." Aurora quickly said back pointing her little finger to the picture that was framed on the front of the album. She didn't understand why he didn't want to look at it with her.

Levesque didn't reply to his daughter's comment. He closed his eyes before his tears could flow from his hazel eyes. Paul couldn't help but think back to the night when he had shared those treasured photographs with his little girl for the first time. He remembered how hopeful he had been then that in the future he and Steph would get back together and it would be the two of them that would look at it with their daughter. But as he sat there now, he knew in his heart of hearts that that day would probably never come. Steph was determined to press on in the life she had created without him; the new baby she was pregnant with was proof of that.

"There Mommy in the white dwess wif my daddy...And there Mommy wif a big belly. Look, Daddy, look, I inside Mommy's big belly cus I'm hided in there." The three year old commented giggling as she pointed out and gave her two cents for the first two pictures inside the album.

"Shh, the last person in the world that Daddy wants to hear you talk about is your mommy." Levesque muttered as he then began to massage his fingertips into the temples of his head. He could feel a pressure headache beginning to form there.

Her father's words caused Aurora's face to form a frown. Her bright eyes sparkled with both confusion and sadness as she wondered why her daddy didn't want her talking about mommy. What was wrong with her looking at pictures of her mother? Did Daddy not like Mommy anymore? If so, why? Was it her fault that Daddy didn't like her mommy anymore?

"Why you mad at Mommy? Mommy say that she always wuv you." Aurora Rose responded back in a soft tone of voice that was almost a whisper. She was, of course, referring back to her mother's reply when she had been asked by Aurora if she loved her daddy. The child had omitted the part of her mother's response where she said 'because he gave me you'.

Hearing his daughter's comment caused Levesque's sorrow to quickly evolve into that of anger. Not anger at his little girl, but at the mother of his child. How dare Stephanie feed a line of bullshit like that to Aurora? It was one thing if she did it to him, but to lead on their daughter was quite another thing. She professed love for him? If she loved him so much why didn't she let him be by her side in the hospital? Why had he been banished to sit in the waiting area for hours on end? Did the kiss he gave her in the kitchen mean anything to her? Obviously not since she was sucking face with Angle a few hours later. Before Paul could reign in his thoughts, his words came spilling out of his mouth.

"Mommy's a liar! She doesn't love anybody but herself and Kurt Angle! And maybe her replacement kids: Andrew and the one she's growing in her belly now! She could care less about me and what we had together! The fucking two-timing bitch!" Levesque screamed out letting every bit of his anger and frustration come flooding out without a single filter for his child's sake.

Her father's outburst, that virtually came out of nowhere, frightened the child. She had placed her hands over her ears the moment he started yelling, but by the end of his rant, her little hands had moved to her face to hide it. The sound of crying replaced the awkward moment of silence between her father's outburst and his reaction to what he said in front of his daughter.

"Shit..." He muttered under his breath.

Paul couldn't believe he had allowed himself to lose control and say all of those hurtful things aloud in front of her. None of what he said was anything that Aurora Rose needed to hear. She didn't deserve that from anyone, especially her own father.

Levesque moved from his seat on the other side of the bed so that he could comfort his crying baby girl. He wanted to act fast to take her tears away. He hated the fact that they were falling because of him and what he said.

"Sweetheart, Daddy's really sorry. Honey, I'm just cranky and-"

"You say bad loud words about Mommy! I no like that, Daddy!" Aurora cried out exposing her face while she began to wring her hands in front of her.

"I know, and I was wrong to do that, okay? Sometimes Daddies and Mommies say things when they're angry that they shouldn't say. And this was one of those times, baby." He said softly as he began to lovingly rub his child's back.

Aurora let out a few sniffles and then took a moment to rub her eyes with both hands. She really didn't understand why her father was upset and yelling. All she knew was that she didn't like what he said. As soon as Aurora Rose removed her hands from her face, she peered down at the open photo album and focused in on the pregnant picture of her mother. From all her daddy's mean words about Mommy, the thing he said that she did comprehend was that her mommy had a new baby hiding inside her belly now.

"Mommy know that a baby hided in her tummy?" Aurora asked her father. For the three year old, it was a relevant question since her mother never said anything to her about a baby being inside her belly.

Paul let out a deep sigh. It was obvious that he spilled the beans to his young child about her mother's pregnancy. Typical Steph to keep the fact that she was expecting hush-hush even from her own daughter. The question now became what he should say in response to his child. He couldn't very well lie and said that she wasn't, especially when a baby would show up in nine months or so. And if he said yes, Steph would certainly find out that he was the one who filled their daughter in about it. Actually, that was probably the least damaging thing he had said in his unbridled flare of anger. He would be lucky if she didn't repeat the profanity that he had let rip about his ex-wife.

"Yeah, she knows. It's that baby that's made mommy sick lately. She had to go to the hospital today and almost lost it." Levesque said aloud staring off into space as he divulged the private information about his ex-wife to their daughter.

"I no like that baby making Mommy sick. Why baby not get lost? I no want Mommy to have new baby, Daddy." She quickly replied back with a bit of attitude as she folded her arms in front of her.

Paul let out a sympathetic sigh while he continued to lovingly rub his child's back. He knew exactly how she felt because it was his feelings exactly. It was one thing he and his daughter certainly had in common: they didn't want Stephanie to have another Angle baby.

"Well sweetheart, there's nothing we can do about that. Mommy's going to have another baby that will take a lot of love and attention just like baby Andrew, and she'll need your help. But don't worry, honey, you will always have all of Daddy's love and attention." Paul promised before giving his daughter a kiss on her cheek.

He wanted to make it clear to his child that even though she was spending most of her time living with her mother and step-father, it was him, her father, that would shower her with all the attention and love that she deserved. She was his one and only child; the remnants of what he and Stephanie had together.

"No fair, I want all Mommy's wuv and attent-shun." Aurora Rose muttered back with a look of sadness on her face as she closed the photo album. She took a moment to study the cover picture of her with both of her parents before she laid back in her bed, letting her head rest on her pillow.

Levesque smiled again and slowly laid down on the bed beside his little girl. He knew how she felt because he too wished that he had Stephanie. Angle didn't deserve to be with her. The dipshit had screwed up a number of times, yet she took him back. Where was his second chance? He never got one.

"Me too, sweetheart, me too."

* * *

The sound of Andrew Vincent's cries coming from the nearby nursery caused Stephanie's blue eyes to flutter open. As the morning's daylight flooded through her iris, she saw that she had fallen asleep on her husband's hard chest. One of Kurt's arms was lightly draped over her. Her large diamond ring sparkled from her hand that was nestled in Angle's chest hair. She was careful not to disturb him as she lifted her head to glance over at the bedside alarm clock. The digital clock read "6:10". Stephanie wasn't surprised, this was the normal time her one year old woke up. The moment that Steph tried to slowly ease away from her sleeping husband, she felt his muscular arm flex, pulling her in close to him.

"Morning, babe." whispered Angle with a smile. One of his blue eyes opened to look at his wife while he allowed the other to stay closed. He was still a little drowsy.

"Good morning." She answered back before leaning back down to give him a quick peck on his full lips.

It was when she went to sit back up, so that she could leave his arms, that Kurt brought both hands to her arms to hold her in place. He always surprised her with how quick his reflexes were, even this early in the morning.

"Wait, where do you think you're going?" He asked smiling while he held onto her.

"Can't you hear that your son is awake?" She questioned through a smile of her own before removing his hands from her arms.

"Yeah, and I'm going to get up with him. You just lay back down and relax." directed Angle as he sat up in their bed and swung his legs over his side of the bed.

Steph raised her eyebrows before she slowly sank back into the comfortable bed. Her eyes remained fixed on him as he stood up in nothing but his white briefs. He took a second where he stood to adjust himself in his underwear before moving to grab a t-shirt and shorts from the nearby dresser drawer.

"Are you sure that you want to get up with him? He's going to need a diaper change and his breakfast." She inquired trying to give her husband an easy out if he didn't want to perform the daily schedule with the one year old that she had perfected herself.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Don't worry about it, okay? You can relax now, babe, because Daddy's home." He replied while quickly putting the light clothing on. After, he then turned back to look at her flashing smirk.

When her husband disappeared through the double doors, she let out a relaxed sigh and stretched her arms out across the width of the king size bed. It felt so good to be able to lay there knowing that someone else was taking over her morning mommy duties. She let out an uninhibited yawn before letting her eyes close. Her body had no problem falling right back to sleep.

Upon entering the nursery, Kurt was quickly greeted with a long string of "Dada"s from his son's wet mouth. Andrew was already standing at the crib railing facing the door. The sight of his son being happy to see him put a huge smile on Angle's face. He had actually contemplated if his time away from his youngster would cause the baby to act differently toward him when returned. It was now clear that that was not the case.

"Hey buddy, how's my big guy?" Kurt asked with a bit of enthusiasm walking across the nursery toward his son.

His words caused the child to let out a squeal of laughter, stretching his arms outward over his crib rail in the direction of his father. In one quick motion, Angle moved forward and took hold of his baby lifting him up and over the crib.

"Daddy missed you, buddy!" laughed Angle as he then began to bench press his son over his head making the baby continue his amusement of playing with his daddy.

After a few more moments of being a goofy dad with his kid, Kurt returned to his duties of fulfilling Andrew's morning routine that started with a diaper change. He had his work cut out for him this morning with taking care of his youngest child. Despite the fact that he had three children with yet another on the way, he considered himself to be still earning his stripes as a father. Feeding Andrew Vincent breakfast would surely be a full body experience for both of them.

Thanks to Angle's greatest efforts to be the best hands-on daddy that he could be, Stephanie was able to get a good four extra hours of sleep. The time that had elapsed felt like a blink of an eye because of how deep asleep she had been. It was the sound of Kurt coming into their master bedroom while carrying a breakfast tray that woke her.

"Hey babe, good morning a second time." He remarked with a smile while walking slowly toward the bed.

"What time is it? How long did I sleep?" Stephanie asked back while letting out a yawn and stretching.

"It's after ten, you slept most of the morning, but that's good. You needed to rest. Cathy's here now and she's looking after Andy. And this, is my pathetic attempt at cooking you breakfast."

Stephanie's mouth formed a smile the moment Kurt sat down on the edge of the bed, placing the breakfast tray across her midsection. This prompted her to sit up, propping the pillows behind her back.

"Oh, honey, you shouldn't have. I mean you _really_ shouldn't have." Stephanie laughed looking down at her husband's pitiful effort to prepare her a meal.

The only thing on the tray that looked at all appetizing to her was the tall glass of orange juice. On a plate sat scrambled eggs which looked to be over cooked. Next to the eggs were four strips of bacon that had been almost burnt to a crisp along with a slice of equally burnt whole wheat toast with red jam smeared all over it.

"I know, I suck at cooking, I'm sorry. I was afraid of giving you something that was undercooked that might hurt you or the baby." Angle explained sheepishly.

"I can see that." Stephanie commented trying her best to hold back her laughter as she lifted the piece of toast from the plate and looked at the burnt underside of it.

"Do you want me to toss it? You don't have to force yourself to eat it on my account."

"No, I'll have a few bites. You know what would be great though? Two strawberry pop-tarts and a banana. I don't think you can mess up toasting the pop-tarts, and the banana needs no preparation." Stephanie informed him before giving him a hearty laugh.

"If I knew that was the breakfast you had in mind, it would have saved me a lot of trouble and embarrassment. Before I go fetch it for you, I'll let you in on the little phone call I made for you this morning." Angle divulged with a big smile on his face.

Stephanie made her thin eyebrows raise while taking a sip of the orange juice. She was showing her intrigue as a result of Kurt's mention of a phone call he had made on her behalf. Steph had no idea what he was talking about, but she was sure he couldn't wait to elaborate.

"I made a call to your favorite spa and made you an appointment for a half day of the finest pampering and relaxation. They are expecting you at noon." Angle announced proudly as he began to lovingly caress her arm with his hand.

"Kurt, you should have asked me first. You have to cancel it, tonight is SmackDown and I left work early yesterday, there's so much wor-"

"I don't want to hear that word come out of your mouth. You almost lost our unborn baby because of all the stress at work and our marital problems. You deserve a break, babe. Please let me give you one. Now, I've already paid for your spa day in advance over the phone. You're getting massages, facials, all of that stuff, the most expensive package they offered. Just go there and enjoy being taken care of, okay?" Angle pled using his other hand to gently brush his wife's brown hair away from her face.

Steph gave him a smile before nodding her head. She was surprised that Kurt would think to do something like that for her. The spa he was referring to was one that was right there in Greenwich. She had been there only once before with her mother almost a year ago during one of their mother-daughter outings that they occasionally made time to do. Had her Olympic sweetheart really come up with the spa idea all on his own? Perhaps her mother had had a hand in suggesting it. Anyway, it didn't matter. Her husband was right, she did need a restful retreat.

"You're so thoughtful." She commented grabbing hold of her husband's t-shirt with both her hands to make him lean toward her.

Angle moved toward his wife giving her a peck on the lips. She then wrapped her arms around his broad neck, and pulled him back in for a few more quick kisses which he gladly accepted.

Kurt was relieved when Steph finally agreed to go to the spa date. It was the best idea he could come up with when thinking about how to keep his pregnant wife away from all of life's stressors. With Stephanie at the spa and the nanny there to watch their son, he was free to travel the hour it took to get to Bradley International to get his Escalade back and turn in the rental.

* * *

Paul loved having his little girl with him. Having her there with him the moment he woke up in the morning was such a joy. She was like his little Stephanie that he had a right to be with because she was his. Levesque enjoyed his morning with his baby girl so much that he decided that he was going to completely blow off SmackDown tapings later in the day. Why should he sacrifice time with Aurora only to fly out to a city he had visited many times before to do a job under Vince McMahon's command? Fuck Vince and his second rate show. Paul was going to spend more time with his daughter and he didn't care what the consequences would be for doing so.

Once he had made the decision to keep his child longer, Paul immediately began to dread having to return to the Angle home to get more fresh clothing for his child. The last thing he wanted to encounter was the "loving couple" in their wedded bliss. God must have really been smiling down on him, because to his pleasant surprise, neither Kurt nor Stephanie were home when he and Aurora stopped by. The nanny was helpful in getting some of Aurora's clothing together, not even bothering to mention the fact that he had showed up unannounced.

"Yeah we had a little bit of a late start, but we're well on our way now. I know, it's been way too long." Levesque said into his cell phone.

While talking on his cell phone, Paul cautiously merged his red Hummer onto Interstate 90 East as his daughter slept soundly in her safety seat behind him. Aurora Rose had fallen asleep just after they had gotten through Hartford Connecticut which was an hour ago. She was a good little traveler despite the fact that she was only three years old.

"Okay, we'll see you then. Love you, bye."

After ending the phone call, he laid his cell phone in his nearest cup holder and brought his full attention back on the road. With both hands back on the wheel, he began to drum his thumbs upon it repeatedly. He couldn't wait to reach his destination. His and Aurora's visit there was long overdue.

* * *

Leaving the spa, Stephanie felt rejuvenated. Her day had been to the essence of relaxation and because of it, she felt like her body had returned to homeostasis. She couldn't wait to get home to spend time with her husband and children. At this point in the day, Paul would have already brought Aurora back before heading to SmackDown. Maybe her and Kurt could take the kids out to dinner.

She was in the mood to celebrate life. After all, she had a lot to be thankful for: she hadn't lost her baby and had two other beautiful children, a husband who adored her, and a job that she loved. Sure there was a far amount of intrusive drama, but that was true for anyone. It was a part of life and she wasn't going to let it have a negative effect on her anymore. She would rise above it.

With her Coach bag on her shoulder, Stephanie casually walked to where she had parked her Porsche in the small parking lot for spa patrons. She entered her vehicle and quickly started it and blasted the air conditioning before rolling down both the driver and passenger side power windows. It was extremely hot inside the car thanks to the sweltering summer sun. Steph donned her sunglasses and was about to put her automobile in reverse when she heard her cell phone ringtone from inside of her handbag. She put the Porsche back into park and then began to rummage through her bag for her phone. When she finally located her phone, she let her sunglasses slide down the bridge of her nose so that she could clearly see the caller i.d.

"Why do I not want to answer this?" Stephanie asked herself aloud the moment she read "Dad's cell".

Steph could only imagine what her father was calling her about. Her instincts told her that it probably wasn't going to be an uplifting conversation. She knew that her mother had filled him in on her threatened miscarriage and that Kurt and her were back together. With what time it was on Tuesday, he had to already be at the SmackDown tapings, so why was he calling her to talk now? She took a deep breath, bracing herself as she hit the green send button and brought the phone to her ear.

"Hi Dad." said Stephanie in a voice that was somewhat monotone.

"Hey Steph, have you heard from that bastard that you were once married to? We're setting up for SmackDown and he's AWOL. I tried calling him but the asshole won't answer his phone. Did you see or hear from him today?" Vince asked his daughter in a booming voice that made her hold the phone away from her ear.

"Dad, please lower your voice. I haven't seen or talked to Paul since yesterday. He had Aurora overnight and he was going to drop her off before traveling to the show. I've been at the spa for most of the day. Let me call home and find out if he dropped off our daughter. It's not like him to just not show up for an event."

"Yeah, you find out where he is and when you do, you can tell him that he can forget about any push for Triple H in the future! I own his ass! He's-"

"Dad, stop! I'm hanging up now and I'm worried that something could have happened to him and Aurora! I'll call you back!" Stephanie yelled back into the phone so that she was able to cut through her father's mindless rant about her ex-husband.

She was telling the truth about being worried. If there was one thing she knew about Paul, it was that he always had a strong work ethic. It would completely be out of character for him to just blow off his obligations to the company. Sure he had left early from shows, or missed a few because of extenuating circumstances, but for all of those past times, he had cleared it with management. This wasn't like him.

She didn't give her father a chance to rebuttal before she ended the call and quickly dialed her home phone number. It took a few rings before her husband picked up.

"Kurt, did Paul drop off Aurora? Is she at home?" Stephanie quickly asked the moment after her husband answered with a 'hello'.

"No, Aurora's not here. It's just me and Andrew here now. I let Cathy go home early."

"You haven't heard from him? Did Cathy mention him at all when you got back from the airport?" Steph inquired in a voice that was beginning to sound frantic.

"No, Steph, what's going on? Are you all right?"

"I-I'll talk to you when I get home. I need to call Paul. Love you, bye." Steph quickly answered back before she hung up. She wasn't going to take the time to explain the events to her spouse as they had unfolded. She needed to get a hold of her ex.

She dialed his cell number into her phone and swallowed hard as she heard the line begin to ring.

"Pick up, Paul. Pick up." She muttered as tears began to well up in her eyes.

She felt like her heart was in her throat. What if something had happened to him and Aurora? That's the thought that kept plaguing her mind as the only plausible reason she could even think of. The loss of one of her children would absolutely destroy her. Aurora was her first born and since the day of her birth, she could never imagine living a day without her child in her life.

Steph bit her bottom lip hard while in her mind she said a silent prayer that her daughter was okay and safe with her father. She felt like her life was hanging in the balance of this phone call.

"P-Paul?" Stephanie blurted out in a tearful voice the very moment the ringing stopped and her call came through to her ex-husband's phone.


	58. Chapter 58

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-Eight

"Yeah?" Paul answered back immediately. Stephanie had spoken first before he even had a chance to say hello.

"Where the hell are you? You were suppose to drop our daughter off at my house hours ago. Dad called asking me why you weren't at the SmackDown tapings. I was afraid something happened to you and Aurora." Steph explained doing her best to keep her emotions in check now that she knew that she had gotten a hold of her ex.

"Fuck your father, I'm tired of being his jobbing bitch. I decided to take Aurora up to Nashua to see my parents. They haven't seen her since she was a baby." explained Levesque in a low voice while looking on at his mother and father making over their granddaughter. He was standing far enough away that they wouldn't be able to hear his conversation with his former wife.

"So you just decided to take my child out of the state without even telling me?" Steph retorted with a bit of an attitude. Her fear had quickly turned to anger as soon as she knew that her little girl was safe with her father in New Hampshire.

"First of all, she is _our_ child, not _your _child. I don't have to ask your permission to spend time with her. Secondly, I figured your nanny would tell you where we were going considering I stopped by your place to get her extra clothes." He said into the phone while his hazel eyes watched his mother, Patricia, hugging and kissing Aurora.

"Well she didn't, and _I_ have primary custody of _our_ daughter, so yes, _you_ do have to check with me before you take her for longer than we agreed upon." Steph voiced in somewhat of a self-righteous tone.

"Well you just hold all the cards, don't you..." Paul muttered into his cell phone with a measure of defeat in his voice.

"Paul, it's not that I have any problem with Aurora going to see your parents. I think that's great. I just wish you would have okayed it with me first. I haven't seen my child since I had to go to the hospital."

"Well now you know how I feel most of the time. By the way, Steph, you're welcome for rushing you to the hospital when you almost lost your new precious Angle baby. Oh, that's right, I should have left what I had to say to you in a voice mail or text message." He told her with fake enthusiasm.

"C-Can I just speak to my daughter, please?" asked Stephanie deciding not to even acknowledge her ex's comments about his involvement in her seeking medical care nor how she chose to thank him for it.

Paul couldn't help but beam with pride at the sight of his father, Paul Sr., hugging Aurora Rose. From where he stood, he could see tears in his father's eyes. It was clear how much his father missed out being a grandfather to his little girl. Seeing how happy his dad was made him positive that he had made the right decision to bring his daughter up to see his parents.

"She's busy spending much needed time with her grandparents. I think it would be unwise for you to talk to her right now, because then she's going to start whining for you and I don't want that to ruin her reunion with my parents. I'll tell her you called though. By-"

"When are you bringing her back to me, Paul?" Steph quickly interrupted him before he could cut the conversation short.

Levesque couldn't deny it. He loved the fact that his ex-wife was now asking _him_ when she was going to see their daughter. It was quite a role reversal. After a full year of having to cater to Stephanie and Kurt Angle's schedule so that he could see his child, he now held all the cards in the deck.

"I don't know, I guess after she has a good visit with her grandparents. I've got to go enjoy my time with my family. I'll be in touch, bye." He finally answered back and then ended the phone call without giving his former wife time to rebuttal.

Paul slipped his cell phone into his back pocket before venturing over to his parents who were still making over their granddaughter. He was anxious to hear what they thought about her since she was now a big girl of three years old and not the little baby they had last seen.

"Oh, she's precious, son. I'm so happy you decided to bring her home to see us." Patricia told him with nothing but love in her voice as she embraced him.

"Yeah, she's my baby girl. I'm glad we came up to see you and Dad. It will be nice to be around family." Paul admitted to his mother.

"Aurora Rose, I can't believe how much you've grown. The last time your grandma and I saw you, you were a little baby in your daddy's arms. And now look at you, a beautiful little girl." Paul Sr. said with pride looking down at his youngest grandchild.

Little Aurora looked to be a bit overwhelmed by all the attention she was getting from the elderly couple that seemed like complete strangers to her despite them saying that they knew her when she was a baby. Levesque took notice of his daughter's shy demeanor and in response, took the opportunity to formally introduce her to her paternal grandparents.

"Aurora, you probably don't remember these two people, but this is Daddy's mommy and daddy. They are your grandma and grandpa. They love you so much." Paul explained to his child.

"We sure do." Patricia chimed in as she lovingly swept her grandchild's hair back away from her small face.

"Can you say hi, sweetheart?" Levesque then asked his child wanting her to interact with his parents.

"Hi..." She muttered in a shy voice that was accompanied by a smile.

It was obviously going to take a little time for the three year old to warm up to her grandparents. She had just spent over three hours in her daddy's big car and had arrived at a house she had never been to before, meeting people that she was being told were her family. Did her mommy know that these people were her family?

"You really Daddy's mommy?" Aurora then asked Patricia after a moment of her little eyes darting back and forth between her father and grandmother.

"I sure am, and I'll tell you what, sweetheart, how about I show you the family album where there are lots and lots of pictures of your daddy when he was a little boy?" Mrs. Levesque offered extending her hand toward her granddaughter.

"Okay.." The child quickly answered back before grabbing hold of Patricia's hand in order to be lead further into the home. She loved looking at pictures, and she couldn't wait to see ones of her daddy when he was a kid.

"Are you doing all right? I mean, really? It's been forever since the last time we've seen you. You okay?" Paul Sr. asked his son the moment his wife and granddaughter left them standing in the foyer.

Even though Mr. Levesque hadn't heard any of the phone conversation that his son had just had, he could tell by how he was acting during the phone call that it wasn't of a particularly pleasant nature.

"I'm hanging in..." Paul Jr. muttered back as a vague answer to his father's inquiry.

He was determined not to drag his family into the problems with his ex-wife and her family. The visit was suppose to be a happy one. Levesque had to forget about the fact that despite his best efforts to be there for Stephanie and make up for their failed marriage, she wanted to stay with Angle. This trip home to New Hampshire was his attempt to escape it all. It wasn't just about skipping work to spend more time with his child, it was about walking out on the McMahon-Angle family and their attempts to hold him down both personally and professionally.

"I'll take that as you don't want to talk about it. If you change your mind and do, you know that your mother and I are here for you." He told his son with a swift pat on the back.

"I know, thanks." Paul replied to his father before giving him a smile to show his gratitude. He then ventured further into his parents' home to see where his mother and daughter were.

"Daddy, wook! You nakey in this picture! You butt out!" Aurora exclaimed in pure delight to her father as she pointed out to him a baby picture of him where he was walking away from the camera without a diaper on.

"Yeah, look how good Daddy's booty looked even back then." chuckled Paul as he looked down at his baby picture that his daughter was showing him.

* * *

Stephanie made her usual route into her home from the garage. Dropping her purse and cell phone in the kitchen, she then traveled into the living room where she found her husband playing with their son on the carpet floor. She stood there for a moment watching them without making her presence known. Her lips pulled taunt forming a smile watching them at play.

"Daddy's got your foot! I got your foot! I"m gonna eat that foot! Give me that foot! Hom-nom-nom-nom!" Angle announced aloud playfully while he grabbed hold of his baby boy's bare right foot and brought it to his mouth.

Andrew howled with laughter while his daddy began to pretend to bite him on his toes. And then Kurt switched gears, causing his child to laugh even more when he moved in and began to blow bubbles on Andy's clothed belly to tickle him.

"I see my boys were having fun while Mommy was away." Steph finally said aloud causing both Kurt and Andrew to look in her direction.

With the return of his mother, Andrew immediately left his daddy on the floor and toddled as fast as he could toward Stephanie with his arms in the air so that he could be picked up.

"Welcome home, Mommy. Is everything okay? What was that kind of frantic phone call asking about Paul all about?" Angle asked getting to his feet after he saw his wife scoop up their son.

"He was suppose to drop Aurora home earlier today. Instead, without even checking with me, he decided to blow off the SmackDown tapings and take her with him up to Nashua to visit his parents." explained Stephanie sounding a bit ticked off when she spoke of her ex-husband's actions.

"Well how long is he going to have her up there for? That's pretty ballsy of him just to leave the state with her without asking you first. Shit, if I ever did that to Karen, she'd have my balls in a vice." Kurt commented following Stephanie to the sofa where he sat down next to her. Little Andrew rested his head on his mommy's chest looking like he was ready to take a nap.

"Well, that might happen to him yet. He copped an attitude with me on the phone and didn't give me a chance to speak to Aurora and he wouldn't tell me when he's bringing her back." She muttered back while cuddling with her youngest born.

"Did you fill him in on the fact that you're pregnant and almost miscarried yesterday? The last thing you need is stress because of him. What a selfish asshole. He's lucky I don't kick his ass again." Angle commented with a great amount of resentment in his voice.

Despite the fact that she was less than thrilled with her ex-husband's decision to take their daughter to New Hampshire without clearing it with her, Kurt bashing him really didn't sit well with her. In no way could she overlook all Paul had done for her just the day before. He had driven her to the hospital and had stayed there worrying about her welfare for over two hours; that was hardly the actions of someone who was a selfish asshole. Angle needed to know that.

"I didn't need to fill him in about anything because he was the one who had to take me to the hospital yesterday. And instead of wanting to kick his ass, you should be thanking him." Steph told her husband saying what she thought he needed to hear.

"What? I thought your mom brought you to the hospital." Kurt finally asked back after a moment or so of awkward silence where he was obviously processing what she had just said to him.

"I never said she did. Mom was first on the scene at the hospital after I got there. Paul was at the house just to pick up Aurora when I started cramping really bad and found I was bleeding. So Cathy stayed with the kids, and Paul drove me to the hospital." Stephanie explained to elaborate further on the circumstances for which Paul was involved.

"And that's it? He just drove you there?" Angle asked back almost like he was giving her a chance to add anything other important detail that she might have 'forgotten' to tell him.

"Yes, he was just there when it all happened. Right place, right time, that's all. I would have asked a ride from anyone. The last time I saw him yesterday was when I was admitted in emergency. I was by myself on the maternity floor until Mom came."

Stephanie let out a scoff before shaking her head. There he went again assuming that there was more going on between her and her ex-husband than there really was. But wait, didn't something happen between them? It wasn't like she had asked for it, but in the midst of comforting her, Levesque had kissed her. But she had broken it without kissing him back. There was no reason to bring it up, because it didn't have any meaning to her.

"Shit..." Angle mumbled back as he too began to shake his head.

"What, you don't believe me?" She asked back in somewhat of a miffed voice.

Angle shifted his muscular frame on the sofa so that he was directly facing his wife. His brilliant blue eyes pierced through hers as he gave her a look of sincerity. He lifted one of her hands that was lying on their son's back and held it in his hand. His lips parted and he then spoke:

"That's not it...I do believe you. I'm just-I'm just mad at myself. I should have been the one who was there for you and our unborn baby, not Paul, me. I would have never been able to forgive myself if you lost the baby and I wasn't there to support you." muttered Kurt. His voice sounded strained like he was fighting to keep himself from getting emotional.

Steph sighed while at the same time her mouth formed a sympathetic smile. She was relieved to hear that his frustration lied within himself instead of with her for allowing her former husband to be involved with her seeking medical attention.

With her hand still in his, she began to squeeze it back slightly before responding to his heartfelt words.

"Well, I didn't lose the baby. I also know that the reason you weren't there is because I threw you out of our house, had I not, you would have been there for me. And I know that, because of how quickly you rushed to my side at the hospital."

"Nothing could have kept me away, Steph. No MMA contract offerings, no matter how sweet of a deal they offered me. You and my kids are my life, and you guys come first before everything else." pledged Angle as he slowly began to close the distance between them on the sofa.

Stephanie smiled seeing his advances. Her response to him inching closer toward her was to move closer to him, catching his lips with hers in a lip lock. While the kiss quickly turned into an opened mouth one, it was still somewhat conservative due to the fact that their one year old child was still in Steph's arms. Like he was making sure his parents hadn't forgotten him, Andrew leaned up smacked his hand onto his father's face causing his mother and father to break their kiss.

"Hey buddy, what was that for? Don't hit Daddy." Kurt asked in a light hearted tone.

His son hadn't hit him that hard. It was like the child had simply wanted to reach up and get his attention. Andy smiled and began to babble the moment after all of his parents attention was back on him.

"No hitting Daddy, little man. Only Mommy delivers slaps in this family." She chuckled before giving her son's little hand a quick kiss.

"I know what, I'm gonna do! I'm going to eat that little hand! Give me that hand, Mommy! Hom-nom-nom-nom!" Angle exclaimed in his best monster voice while taking their child's hand away from his wife. He then stuck a few of the chubby digits between his lips so that he could pretend to be eating them. Andrew Vincent's whole body began to shake as he literally began to vibrate with laughter.

"No, Daddy, don't eat up my baby boy!" giggled Stephanie pulling her son's hand away from his daddy. She was more than willing to play along with their game. The sound of her children's laughter was her favorite sound in the whole world.

Kurt simply chuckled while watching his wife plant a few kisses on their child's cheeks. Focusing on the side of his son's face, close to where his wife was kissing him, he began to notice a faint light purple mark on the baby's skin. Was that from today during his watch? He hadn't noticed it since he had been back home.

"Hey babe, what's that on the side of his face? Is that a bruise or am I just seeing dirt or food on him?" He questioned aloud in order to get a second opinion from his spouse.

Stephanie didn't even need to look at the side of her baby's face to know what it was he was referring to. She knew full well that that bruise had been a result of Andrew falling into the glass coffee table under Paul's watch. Did he have to know that though? Knowing Levesque had anything to do with the fall would most surely cause Kurt to think that her ex hurt their son. Steph hesitated for only a few seconds before giving him a reply.

"Andy was playing in here yesterday and tripped over one of his toys. He smacked his head into the coffee table pretty hard, but he was very stoic. He barely cried at all. Andy Angle's tough like his daddy."

"Shit, really? The glass coffee table? I guess that stuff happens while he's just starting to walk. Who was watching him? You or Cathy?" Kurt then inquired with concern.

He wondered if his son was unsupervised when it happened. At the same time, also in the back of his mind, he wondered if Paul was there when the incident had taken place. Steph had already admitted that he was there at their home to pick up Aurora. He was sure Levesque had physically harmed Andrew before, even if he couldn't get his wife to believe him. And now, after he and Steph were finally back together, there was no way he was going to come right out and accuse her ex-husband of hurting their son yet again.

Stephanie looked away from her husband's gaze for a quick instant as her mind was processing his inquiry.

Jesus, he was now asking her who was with Andrew when he fell. There was no way she was going to let him know that Paul was watching both children for her while she was working in the office and Cathy was running an errand. If she lied and said Cathy was the one who was watching him, there was a chance that he would ask their nanny about the incident and quickly find out that Catherine was not there to witness it.

"I was watching him. Kurt, toddlers often fall. I put a cold compress on the bump to make the swelling go down and he was fine. The bruise will go away in a few days. To be honest, I had completely forgotten about it until you asked me."

"All right, well, I guess we'll need to be more careful leaving his toys all over. I'm just glad he's okay." He replied with a sigh of relief.

Stephanie nodded in agreement and then allowed her husband to take their son from her arms. She then sat back into the sofa and smiled while watching her husband and baby interacting happily.

She had just lied to Kurt by saying that she was the one who was watching Andrew when he fell. But that was the best card she had to play. If she would have told him the truth than he would have immediately jumped to the conclusion that Paul had maliciously done something to their baby. It was best for everyone that she just fibbed and said it happened on her watch so that there would be no issue and they could move on. Thankfully, Angle seemed to be satisfied with her story.

* * *

Spending the night at his parents' house had landed Paul and Aurora in his old room from his childhood. Everything was the same as the last time he had visited when he was still with Stephanie. His parents had kept all of his old little league trophies, baseball cards, and catcher's mitt; everything that he had once taken pride in displaying when he was a little tyke.

He remembered how much Steph loved seeing the room of his childhood. Spending time with family had always been high on his and Stephanie's list of things to do together as a couple. Ironically, it was after the birth of their child, an event that usually brought a family closer together, that signaled the last of the family vacations to Nashua.

Paul didn't have his family anymore. Perhaps that was the reason he had refrained from visiting his mother, father, and the rest of his family after the marital discord began. He didn't want them to see how much he had lost within the last year. He didn't want his elderly parents to see how miserable his life had become after Steph had left him. But enough was enough. With discovering his ex-wife's second Angle pregnancy, he could feel a wave of brooding depression beginning to wash over him. This time was different, because his mood could potentially hurt his daughter. The fact that he lost control and ranted angrily about Stephanie in front of his three year old was proof of that. Paul couldn't let that happen. He had worked so hard in helping his little girl to warm back up to him.

Taking Aurora with him on an impromptu visit back to see his family in his hometown was definitely an act of seeking sanctuary. Sanctuary from everything in his life that was turning disastrous regardless of his best efforts. And what a good idea it had been. Seeing his little girl spending time with his mother and father gave him such joy that for the day, Stephanie McMahon-Angle had escaped his thoughts. It had been a good day.

"Here we are, all tucked in and ready for a good night's rest. Did you have fun today at Grandma and Grandpa's house?" asked Paul while he lovingly tucked his baby girl into bed.

"Yeah...I wuv my pwesent that Grandma got-ed me." Aurora commented holding up the small plush doll that her grandma Patricia had surprised her with just before dinner time. It was a soft dolly that wore a pink dress and matching shoes. On its head was yellow yarn strands bunched into two pigtails.

"That was a nice gift. She and grandpa love you very much. Does that dolly have a name yet?"

"Claire!" She exclaimed with enthusiasm holding the doll out to her father for him to interact with her new toy.

"That's a good name, sweetheart. I'm going to give Aurora and Claire both a kiss because it's their bedtime. And tomorrow we'll have some more fun together, okay?" Levesque said back giving both the doll and his daughter a quick kiss before getting up to leave the room.

"Daddy?" The three year old quickly called out before her father could make it to the light switch by the door.

"Yes, sweetheart." Paul whispered in response to his child calling for him. He turned back to face her.

"We go home tomo-woah?"

"You want to go home? Back to daddy's house?" Levesque asked as he slowly began to walk back to the bed.

Aurora Rose shook her head while at the same time she slightly bit her bottom lip.

"No, I wanna go home to Mommy. I want my mommy, Daddy." The child admitted while hugging her new doll tightly to her.

There it was again. His former wife being brought up out of the blue by their daughter. Wasn't she having a terrific time with him in New Hampshire? Hadn't the day been exciting enough to keep her thoughts about mommy at bay? She was with Daddy and that should have been good enough for her. Paul had planned on visiting with his parents for at least two more days.

"Are you happy here in New Hampshire with your Daddy and his mommy and daddy? Wouldn't you like to stay just a few more days so that you could meet your aunt Lynn and your cousins, Neysa and Peter?"

"No, I miss my mommy. I wanna go home to Mommy." She quickly replied back in a whine after shaking her head adamantly.

Levesque let out a long sigh before scratching his well manicured beard with his hand. He was somewhat disappointed by the fact that his daughter was ready to go back to the Angle home after only spending one full day with him. His knee jerk reaction was to get upset by his daughter's blatant favoring of being with her mother over him and his family. But he quickly curtailed his emotions and instead gave in to his daughter's wanting.

"I'll take you to your mommy tomorrow night, okay?" Paul then asked in a sympathetic tone of voice.

His words caused a smile to form on Aurora's face. She nodded her head in approval before tucking the covers under her chin and then turning onto her side. Seeing this signaled Levesque to walk back to the door of his bedroom.

"Night-night, baby." He whispered with love before flicking the light off in the room.

Knowing about his daughter's fear of the dark and en lieu of a nightlight, Paul left the bedroom door halfway open. The moonlight from the nearby hallway window shined into the bedroom to provide natural light shining into the room for Aurora.

"Did our little darling get settled in okay?" Mrs. Levesque asked her son the moment he entered the kitchen where she was still cleaning up.

"Yeah, she was fine. You need any help with anything, Mom?"

"No son, I'm fine. I just have a few more dishes and cups to rinse out and put in the dishwasher. I know I said this earlier, but I'm so happy that you and Aurora are here to visit. It feels like forever since I've seen the both of you. I still can't believe how much she has grown." Patricia gushed.

"Yeah, she's growing like a weed. And I swear, if I didn't know any better, I would have thought that Steph just cloned herself. She's got all her mother's looks. I see Steph every time I look at her."

"Well, I think she definitely does favor her mother, but as your mother, I can say that I see you in Aurora too." She assured him with a knowing smile before going back to loading dishes into the dishwasher.

"Thanks, Mom, but she's a mommy's girl. She just told me at bedtime that she wants to go home to her mommy tomorrow. I've only had her since late yesterday and she already wants to go back to her mother. How am I suppose to feel good about that, Mom?" He complained aloud to his mother.

"Aw, she's probably not used to being away from Stephanie for too long. Poor baby, it has to be so hard for her not having you and Stephanie together. I can only imagine what she's been going through." Patricia commented letting her compassion for her youngest grandchild shine through during her mundane kitchen chores.

"We've all gone through a lot. You have no idea..." Paul muttered back diverting his eyes downward toward the kitchen floor.

Mrs. Levesque quickly picked up on the overwhelming sadness in her son's voice. She stopped what she was doing, dried her hands with the dishtowel, and then placed one of her hands on her son's shoulder. She knew that something was plaguing him. She could only hope that he would be forthcoming about it if she asked him. They had always had a great relationship since Paul was a small child.

"You know you can talk to me. Whatever you are going through, I'm here. I had a feeling something was going on with you. We've lost touch these past several months. I haven't been able to get you on the phone or to return my calls."

"I know, it's my fault, I've just been so preoccupied with life. I know that's no excuse but my world has been completely turned upside down since my divorce from Steph." He explained with a large amount of guilt in his voice. He knew his excuse wasn't a valid one to make up for the fact that he had been avoiding talking with his mother.

"Is it the custody arrangement for Aurora that is upsetting you? I always liked Stephanie and thought she would be more than fair with you when it came to Aurora and what was best for her." She inquired, searching her mind for the cause of her son's problems.

"Mom, it's-it's everything. It's Stephanie's blind love for her new replacement husband, Kurt Angle. It's knowing that Angle gets to be with my little girl more than I do. It's the fact that despite all the efforts I've made to be the man that Steph fell in love with, she doesn't see it." blurted out Paul in a single breath as he began to get his tribulations off his chest.

He could feel his chest tightening as soon as he listed off everything that had been eating away at him for the past year. This was the first time he had actually systematically voiced his list of grievances aloud. Sure he had shared some of those problems with Shawn, but he had stopped doing so months ago when he realized that all he would receive back was a Holy sermon.

Patricia's mouth gapped open slightly while she attempted to formulate in her mind the best response she should give him after he had just shared so much with her. She wet her lips and was about to speak when her son beat her to it.

"And to top it all off, she's pregnant again. Do you believe that?" He muttered in a voice that reflected his anger and frustration with his ex.

"Who? Stephanie?" Mrs. Levesque asked. She was already pretty sure that he was speaking about his former wife, but she just wanted to make sure she was still following him.

"Yeah, she's having her second kid with Angle...After all I've done to prove to her that I'm the same guy she fell in love with, she gets knocked up by him again. I mean, am I invisible to her? Do I no longer exist?"

"Son, have you tried telling Stephanie how you feel? I know that would be kind of awkward since from what you have told me, it seems like she has already moved on with her life." Patricia pointed out with a subtle shrug of her shoulders.

"Yeah, in so many words...It hasn't really changed anything. She's still with him." He muttered back in a dull voice.

"Well then, I think you have your answer. I'm sorry to say this son, but, I think if she felt the same about you then she would have left her new husband to be with you." She pointed out before closing her eyes. It really pained her to have to be so frank with her son who she loved, but it was something she felt he needed to hear.

Paul's bearded jaw trembled before he breathed in deep through his large nostrils. His emotions were starting to get the best of him and he couldn't have it. There was no way he was going to lose control in front of his own mother. Levesque let out a loud grunt, clearing his throat before he spoke.

"I'm really beat, I should be getting to bed. Night, Mom." He muttered moving away from his mother's hand that was still on his shoulder.

"Paul?" Mrs. Levesque called after her son before he had a chance to walk out of the kitchen.

His mother's voice beckoning him caused Paul to freeze in place. He let out a forced sigh, not bothering to turn and face her for the fear of losing control of his emotions would follow after he laid eyes on the woman who had given him life.

"What should matter most to you is Aurora, not your ex-wife. Your daughter needs you to be there for her like I've been there for you all of your life. That baby girl upstairs is your greatest accomplishment, not your success in body building or all the WWE championships you've won. Please never lose sight of that. You should be thankful for that beautiful gift God has bestowed upon you instead of focusing on what was taken away." Patricia told him in the most serious tone of voice that she could muster.

Paul stood there in the kitchen a moment longer. He had no words to say in response to his mother's. While her words were that of wisdom, they were not the least bit comforting to him in his time of psychological turmoil. His problem wasn't a lack of love and appreciation for Aurora Rose, it was the fact that he was still very much in love with the woman who had given him said child.

"Night..." He muttered back before shuffling forward leaving his mother alone in the kitchen.


	59. Chapter 59

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Fifty-Nine

The first thing that Stephanie did Wednesday morning was convince her husband that she needed to retain her rightful place as family chef. Due to his obvious fail at making her breakfast the day before, Angle quickly gave in. He gladly retired his chef hat for the job of feeding Andrew Vincent so that his wife was able to cook with ease.

"Kurt, you know, when you feed the baby, you are suppose to put the food into his mouth, not all over his face, hands, and clothing." Stephanie pointed out to her husband to poke fun at him on Daddy duty.

"I'm trying to get the spoon in his mouth, but he keeps turning his head to look at you." explained Angle as he let the spoon fall back into the bowl of baby oatmeal.

"If you turned the high chair so that he would face me then he could watch me without having to turn his head." She quickly pointed out raising her eyebrows slightly.

Steph was sometimes surprised by how Kurt was so oblivious to solutions to problems that seemed like common sense to her. Everyday parenting came so naturally to her that she never had to think about it. Angle, on the other hand, always seemed like a novice; unless it was playing with his kids, he was always a natural at that.

"The food smells great, babe." He commented while turning the high chair around as well as adjusting the position of his chair.

"I know, I'm starving. I love breakfast food. I love all food, actually. It's being pregnant that does that to me. I'm going to look like Shamu the whale before I pop this kid out." Steph chuckled placing her left hand over her robe that was covering her abdomen.

"Steph, you're the sexiest pregnant woman I've ever seen. The weight means nothing, sweetheart. You eat as much as you want because it's good for the baby. You'll lose it after he's born." replied Kurt after he successfully spoon fed their son.

Angle's words caused Stephanie to look up from her stovetop of pancakes and bacon. Her eyes gazed over as she watched him grab his cell phone and begin to punch the keypad with his thumbs.

"Who are you texting?" She quickly asked him before flipping a pancake over to reveal its golden brown side.

"Brock. I'm hoping he'll even text me back. I've got a feeling that he's pissed that I walked out on him and Dana White after he went through the trouble in setting up that try out for me. I feel guilty for leaving him hanging, but he of all people should know that family comes first." He explained setting his phone back down on the table so that he could go back to feeding his son.

"You would think, but I wouldn't call him Mr. Sensitivity." Steph mentioned with an eye roll. It was no secret she had never been very fond of Lesnar, despite how well she got along with his wife.

"You know, Rena's pregnant again too. Pretty wild, huh?"

"Yeah, it is. It's good to know that I won't be the only one blowing up like a blimp in a few months." She chuckled tending to the sizzling bacon with her metal tongs.

Hearing the house phone ringing from a nearby counter top base caused Stephanie's attention to shift in its direction. She quickly stepped away from her stove to answer it without even bothering to see who was calling.

"Hello?" Steph voiced into the cordless phone after balancing it between her cheek and her shoulder so that she was able to resume cooking breakfast.

"Good morning, Stephanie. How's my beautiful pregnant daughter doing?" Vince commented back in a somewhat cheerful tone of voice that was in complete contrast to how he sounded the day before when he was probing for information of her ex-husband's whereabouts.

"Good morning, Dad, I'm fine. To what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call?" She asked back with a hint of both laughter and sarcasm in her voice. There had to be a reason that he was calling her at home when he knew she wasn't going to be in to the office for the next few days. It wasn't like him just to call to say hi.

"I was just calling to inform you that we are having an important meeting regarding Jeff Hardy's replacement this afternoon at one. I want you to join us via video conference on your laptop. You need to be a part of this since Triple H is off the table for consideration after Paul blew off SmackDown yesterday. Speaking of that asshole, did you ever manage to get a hold of him? All I was able to get was his voice mail."

"Yes, he and Aurora are in New Hampshire visiting his parents. I received a text message from him this morning saying that he would be bringing her home later today."

"He's got a lot of nerve shirking his responsibilities to the company in order to go visit his family. He can't do that on his own time? You ask him that when you see him!" McMahon commanded back.

"Dad, I'm going to go. We're about to sit down and have breakfast. I will see you on the video conference at one. Bye!" She replied back quickly before ending the call and placing the phone on her countertop. She was in no mood for her father's usual bullshit this early in the day.

"You sure got him off the phone quick." Angle chuckled while he fed another spoon of oatmeal to their son. He had been listening to his wife speaking briefly to her father.

"He can be so aggravating sometimes. I swear, I need to hear him go on and on about Paul just as much as I need to get sick again. I'm starting to wonder if he can ever just call me to have a pleasant conversation. I guess that's asking for too much, huh?" She scoffed letting the pancakes fall onto the breakfast plates followed by the pieces of bacon.

"Yeah, knowing Dad, that would be too much to ask." Kurt agreed with a smile as he watched his wife approach him in order to serve him with his plate of food.

"You know, I could have gotten up and got the plate from you. It's bad enough that you're on your feet cooking breakfast. You should be resting." He added admitting to his guilt for allowing her to cook and serve him breakfast.

"Kurt, how many times do I have to tell you? I'm fine to be up moving around. You should be happy that I'm staying home from work this week. The baby and I are fine, you just need to find something else to worry about." Stephanie told him with a hint of bitchiness in her voice. While she knew that her husband meant well, his over protective routine was getting old very fast.

Before Angle was able to rebuttal, his cell phone began to ring signaling an incoming call from where it sat on the breakfast table.

"I bet that's your pal, Brock, calling you back." Stephanie commented while watching her husband reaching for the cell phone.

Kurt seemed to agree with his wife's prediction because of the smile on his face, however, it quickly faded when he had his phone in his hand and could actually see the caller id. The look of concern on his face in turn worried Steph.

"It's not Brock?" She inquired aloud wanting him to tell her who was calling. Whoever it was, he didn't look like he wanted to take the call.

"It's my lawyer." He muttered back.

"Is he calling about the arrest?" Stephanie then asked, almost like she was thinking aloud to herself instead of looking for an answer from Kurt.

Angle didn't answer back, instead he answered the call, bringing the phone to his good ear.

"Mike?" He said into his phone not even bothering to say hello first. He was too much on edge to find out why his lawyer was calling him that early in the day when he thought the whole DUI fiasco was behind him.

As if on cue, baby Andrew began to whine and cry reaching out toward his father and his bowl of baby oatmeal. He was getting pissed off by the fact that his father had ceased feeding him his breakfast in order to answer the phone call.

The disruption from his son was making it hard for Kurt to hear Mr. Santicola, who was explaining the reason for calling. Angle quickly got up from his seat and left the kitchen by traveling down the hallway to another part of the house where he could hear Mike over his son's crying.

With her husband out of the room and on the phone, Stephanie quickly took his seat in front of Andrew's high chair and picked up where he had left off feeding him. His mommy feeding him his breakfast caused Andy's crying to immediately stop. The welcomed silence allowed Steph to hear Kurt's voice in the other room. She couldn't hear exactly what he was saying, it was muffled, but she could tell by the tone of his voice that whatever he was saying, it didn't sound pleasant.

As heated as the conversation sounded, it was surprisingly brief. Angle reemerged from the hallway with a blank stare, his cell phone still in hand.

"Kurt, what's going on?" Steph was able to ask a few minutes later.

"Mike just called to tell me that Karen tried to terminate my parental rights to Kyra and Kody. He was contacted this morning by her Tennessee lawyer. She's trying to say that I'm an unfit father because of the whole DUI arrest." Kurt muttered in a hoarse voice that sounded like it was on the verge of cracking with emotion.

"What? That's crazy! She can't do that! You've done nothing to have your paternal rights taken away!" Stephanie yelled back in anger. She was in complete shock that her husband's ex-wife would attempt to take his children away from him, as if moving them to Tennessee wasn't enough.

Andrew Vincent resumed whining again when his mother's attention was taken away. Unlike the last time though, his crying was quickly curtailed when Stephanie popped his pacifier into his mouth that had been nearby on the kitchen table.

"That's what Mike said. He said that no judge will grant her sole custody. I just can't believe she's actually trying to take my children from me. Kyra had told me that she was asking them if they wanted to change their last name to Jarrett, but I never thought she would take it this far." He admitted sinking into one of the kitchen chairs facing his wife.

"Oh, Kurt, it will be okay. She can't keep you from seeing Kyra and Kody. She has no case against you." Stephanie assured him in a sympathetic voice.

Seeing him bring his hands up to his face compelled her to leave her seat and approach him. It was clear that her words of encouragement were not enough to keep him from losing his composure. Steph placed her hand on his back and began to rub in between his shoulder blades.

"I just pray to God that her request just gets thrown out. The arrest was bad enough, I don't know what I'll do if I lose two of my kids because of it. I can't stand the thought of Jeff Jarrett adopting my kids and calling himself their daddy." He confided to her with a fair amount of strain to his voice. His muscles were all tightened as he was tense with worry.

He felt like the preverbal rug had been pulled out from under him without warning. Did Karen truly believe that he no longer deserved to be the father of the two beautiful children he had given her during their marriage? Sure he had made mistakes during the course of their marriage, but he always made it a point to provide for their children. He never had a problem forking over the hefty child support payments to his bitchy ex-wife because he knew it would benefit Kyra and Kody. Hell, because she had been Mrs. Kurt Angle when he had made it big as a professional wrestler, she was now a millionaire. All of the money in child support obviously wasn't enough though. She was going after what he valued most: his children.

"I would never let her take your kids from you. I'm your wife and mother of one going on two of your children and I would attest to your capabilities as a father to your children. You're great with our son, and you're even terrific with Aurora, and she's not even yours. And when this new baby comes into the world, I know without a doubt that you're going to be there for him or her." She then said with a reassuring smile as she took one of his hands and brought her to robe covered abdomen.

Stephanie's loving words caused Kurt to look up at her. His blue eyes sparkled with tears. He could not believe how lucky he was to have her in his life. With everything that had been thrown at them in the last few weeks, they had gotten passed it together. It was a testament to how strong their love for each other was. He would not take her love for granted. She was his guiding light through all of the trials and tribulations that God had set before him.

"Thank you, baby. I love you so much." Angle whispered while at the same time he leaned toward her and then wrapped his arms around her waist. He hid his face into her robe. His lips kissed the spot where he thought his unborn child was growing inside her at that very moment.

"I love you too, honey. You'll see, it will all work out." She whispered back with a smile. Both of her well manicured hands caressed where his neck met his back along his spine.

Stephanie could feel a wave of admiration and love wash over her as her husband's arms tightened around her waist while he hugged her lower body close to him. Many women would be turned off completely by a muscle bound man showing vulnerability by crying, but Steph was touched by how hard he was taking the mere possibility of losing his right to be the father to his two other children. It spoke volumes to the extent of how important his kids were to him. This was something she had not seen in Paul. She never saw him shed a single tear in the absence of time with his daughter. Levesque was more likely to rage out in response. Perhaps the two men were just very different in the way that they handled strife. Steph sure knew which method of coping that she preferred to deal with though; thank God it was from the man she was currently married to.

* * *

Several times during the course of the drive back to Greenwich Connecticut Paul found himself tearing up. It surprised him each time and he was quick to fight his tears back before his little girl in the backseat could notice. He knew why he was getting emotional. Despite wanting to keep his baby girl with him for the rest of the week, he was on his way to return her to her mother. With every mile the Hummer traveled down the highway, the more he dwelled on the thought of having to say goodbye to her.

While he had had her for more than a day, the time with her had gone by faster than a blink of an eye. Their return to Connecticut was the same; it felt like a shorter drive coming back from Nashua then it did going there. Perhaps it was the less amount of congestion on the road, but most likely, it was the impending sadness that he was going to have to face when he said goodbye to his child.

At least Aurora had gotten to see her Aunt Lynn and her two cousins when they came over for breakfast. She had taken a shining to her older cousin, Neysa, who made it clear that the feeling was mutual. His niece had been sweet enough to braid Aurora Rose's brown hair into one small braid. If Neysa lived closer to them, she would surely be a mentor to her little cousin.

All the Levesques being under the same roof definitely gave him the old familiar feeling of being a part of a family, which was something that he had desperately missed since he had lost his family with Stephanie.

"I home!" Aurora shrieked aloud with excitement when she saw the oh so familiar sight of the Angle home from the window of Daddy's Hummer.

"Daddy, I see Mommy now! I get out and see Mommy now!" She then exclaimed before he could even pull the SUV to a stop in the driveway.

Paul couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed by his child's insistence that he hurry and get her out of the Hummer. Normally, Levesque liked to take a moment and mentally prepare himself before he would approach the Angle home. Aurora Rose was too anxious to see her mother to wait. The moment he set her on her feet in the driveway, she took off running full force toward the front porch with her new doll clutched to her with her left arm.

"Hey wait for Daddy!" Levesque called after her. He quickly hit the button to lock his SUV before running after her.

"Mommy! Open up, I home! Mommy!" The three year old hollered as she immediately began to knock on the lower part of the front door where she could reach. She wasn't tall enough to ring the doorbell herself.

Paul pressed the doorbell as soon as he too was on the front porch. After the bell chimed, it wasn't even a full minute before the door flew open with Stephanie, who looked to be overjoyed, on the other side of it.

"Oh my baby girl, I've missed you so much, honey!" Steph immediately gushed scooping up her three year old to be hugged tightly in her arms. Hugs were then closely followed by kisses, and then she took a moment to gaze at her little girl who she had missed terribly.

"Your hair looks so beautiful, sweetheart. Did Grandma Patricia braid it for you?" She then asked her daughter allowing one of her hands to run down her brown braid.

"No, it's was actually Neysa who did her hair." Levesque interjected before their child could answer back.

He was making his obvious presence known since she hadn't even bothered to look at him, much less, acknowledge that he was there too. He hadn't even been invited into the house for he was still standing there on the front porch.

"Look what Daddy's Mommy goted me! She Claire!" Aurora then announced holding her new doll in front of her so that her mother could see.

"Oh wow, what a nice present Grandma Patricia got you! Why don't you go show Kurt and Andrew your new doll while I talk to Daddy, can you do that, sweetie?'" Stephanie asked her child setting her down on her feet.

Aurora looked hesitant at first since she had missed her mother so much and wanted to be on her like glue. But remembering that she had so many of her other toys and stuffed animals in the living room compelled her to nod her head in response to her mommy's request.

"Thanks for bringing her home today. I really missed her." Steph thanked her ex the minute they were left alone in the doorway. She had unintentionally positioned herself so that he couldn't even enter the house.

"You're welcome. I really needed some time with her. My family needed time with her too since they hadn't seen her since she was in diapers. I'm sorry about the miscommunication yesterday, I was sure that your nanny would have told you that I was keeping her longer." explained Levesque as he used his right muscular arm to lean against the opened front door.

"You know, you were really selfish yesterday, Paul. I can understand that you wanted to spend more time with our daughter, but blowing off SmackDown to do so-"

"Would you stop with the SmackDown tapings? Do you think it really matters if I show up there or not? We both know that Vince was just going to job me out to some little numb nuts that isn't even in my league. Why do you even care about-"

"I care because _I_ was the one who pushed for you to take Jeff Hardy's spot as number one contender for the WWE championship on RAW! I went to bat for you to be moved back to our number one show, to end your losing streak! And what did I get for backing you? You blew off one of my shows!" Stephanie yelled back completely cutting him off mid sentence.

"Shit, how was I suppose to know that you were pushing for me to be in a main event spot? You said nothing to me about this." He answered back in his own defense.

"Well, it doesn't matter now, because Dad made it clear in the meeting today that it will be Shawn who is going to take Hardy's spot to face Jericho. Shawn announced that he is retiring this year so we're giving him a big send off. I'm suppose to call him tonight to confirm the details." She muttered folding her arms across her chest.

"Good, I'm glad that Vince chose to give my spot to someone who truly deserves it. My best friend deserves nothing less for putting up with me this past year. I've confided in him a lot to the point where I'm sure he doesn't want to hear more of my problems anymore than I want to tell him." Levesque chuckled completely defusing what could have been an argument between them over business.

"Good, well, just make sure that you clear it with management before you miss another show. I would hate for Dad to have to suspend you. I know how much wrestling means to you. Enjoy the rest of your day, Paul." She said back politely before she started to close the door.

"Yeah, thanks, I guess you can tell Aurora I said bye." He replied before the door shut.

With the conversation between him and Steph ending, he couldn't help but shake his head. Had she really taken on the cause to have Triple H put back in the main event on RAW or was she just trying to make him feel bad about leaving McMahon in the lurch? He wasn't really sure. He did know that the news of his best friend, Shawn, getting one more opportunity to show why he was the Heartbreak Kid was terrific. Michaels deserved the spot as he made his final swan song, bowing out gracefully as one of the greatest showmen of the business.

After she had said goodbye to her former husband, Stephanie returned to the living room to enjoy being with both of her two children. Since it had been days since she was with her little girl, Steph sat down with her child at the doll house to play with her. Aurora had assigned her mother the Daddy figure to play with while the three year old put herself in charge of playing the Mommy and the puppy dog figurines.

"The mommy give puppy a baff in the baffy tub." Aurora said aloud placing the animal figure into the plastic bath tub that was in the doll house bathroom. She then made the mother figure lean over the tub to pretend to wash the dog.

"Ma-ma dat!" Andrew exclaimed with glee pointing to his sister's doll house while he struggled to climb into his mother's lap.

Kurt had been attempting to keep the one year old busy on the other side of the room so that Stephanie could spend some one on one time with Aurora, but the baby was much more interested in what Mommy and Aurora were doing.

"Andy, come on, come back over here with Daddy." Angle called out for the baby.

"He can stay over here with us. I think he missed his big sister." Steph pointed out with a smile before giving her youngest a kiss on the cheek.

Angle quickly realized that his wife was enjoying being with both of her children at once. It was clear to anyone who would see her with both of the kids that she loved being a mommy. Instead of inserting himself into things, Angle simply pulled out his cell phone and began texting his brother-in-law, Shane, about his almost UFC tryout.

"No! No touch, baby! That mine!" Aurora screamed out when she saw the one year old take the plastic man from his mother and begin to manipulate it in his small hands.

"Aurora, he's not hurting anything by holding the Daddy. You need to share." Steph corrected her daughter while using her hand to block the child from reaching for the plastic toy in the baby's hands.

"But Mommy, I want you to pway wif _me_!" Aurora Rose whined bouncing herself up and down a bit to show her frustration.

The three year old hated the fact that her mother was holding the baby in her lap and letting him play with her toys. Mommy was suppose to be playing with her not with the baby.

"I _am_ playing with you, but you need to learn to be a big girl and share. Pretty soon you're going to have a new baby brother or sister that's going to want to play with us too." Stephanie told the child with a smile.

Steph wasn't sure that her daughter would pick up on the fact that she was being told about a new sibling that was going to be joining their family. She hadn't even planned on mentioning the unborn baby to Aurora yet, but it just came out.

Mention of a new baby caused the three year old to put on a pouty face. She had almost completely forgotten about what her daddy had told her while at his house. Now her mother was confirming the existence of a baby hiding in her tummy. Daddy was right. A new baby was going to be coming out of hiding soon and was going to take all of her mommy's love and attention away, just like baby Andy did.

"Why new baby inside your tummy? Why it get in there, Mommy?" Aurora asked aloud looking directly at her mother.

While Stephanie took a quick moment to come up with a response that was appropriate for a three year old as well as an honest reply, she was beckoned by the sound of her cell phone ringtone.

"Hang on a second, Mommy needs to answer her phone."

Stephanie got up from the floor, leaving both children so that she could answer her cell before it went to voice mail.

"Hello?" She quickly said after hitting the send button and bringing it to her ear. She walked out of the living room to make sure that her children wouldn't interfere with what she expected to be a business call.

"Hi, Stephanie? This is Candice Beckman-Ehrlich, I'm sorry to bother you, and I hope you don't mind that I got your cell phone number from Mr. Laurinaitis, but I needed to speak with you."

"Okay..." Steph replied causing a bit of an awkward moment before the diva pressed on.

"Listen, I just found out about that ridiculous rumor about me and Kurt. I think I was the last person to know since all the divas were spreading that garbage behind my back. I would have said something to you in person, but you nor Kurt were at RAW this past Monday. I just wanted to make it clear that there isn't anything going on between me and Kurt. And the baby that I'm expecting is my husband, Ken's, child. I'm so embarrassed that anyone would make up such hurtful lies."

"I know, women can be cruel, especially in this business. I appreciate you calling me and letting me know the truth personally. Of course I already knew that it was all lies, but thanks for the phone call."

"Oh not a problem, Steph. I just can't believe how out of control it all got. I mean, Triple H was kidding around with me saying that Kurt had a crush on me and then the next thing I know, me helping you guys out by babysitting your little ones automatically means that I'm cheating with my boss' daughter's husband. It's unbelievable." Candice admitted explaining the chain of events as she saw it, that led up to where they were now.

"What, wait, Paul told you that Kurt had a crush on you?" Stephanie asked back thinking that she had misunderstood what the diva was telling her.

"Well yeah, but I figured he was just messing with me. I figured that he was pulling my leg because why else would he tell me that out of the blue after a show, right?"

"Yeah...That's right..." Stephanie replied back before letting her mouth gape open as her mind wandered.

Had Paul really been the source of all those nasty rumors about Kurt and Candice Michelle? The diva, herself, had implicated him. But would he really do something that petty as to spread gossip? Besides, Levesque was on SmackDown, when and where would he talk to a RAW diva? She didn't buy it. Paul wouldn't do something so childish.

And then, before Stephanie could comment further, she heard her one year old begin to cry followed by her husband calling her name. Something had happened in the family room and she needed to get back there.

"Candice, I need to go. Thanks for calling, take care."

"What's going on?" Stephanie asked with a voice full of worry coming back quickly into the living room.

She had returned to find her husband holding their crying one year old while Aurora was standing next to her doll house with a look of guilt like she knew she had done something that she wasn't suppose to do. The moment Andy saw his mother, he reached out in her direction.

"I was texting Shane and I looked up and saw Aurora shoving the baby! He barely missed the glass table when he fell back onto the carpet! How long has this behavior been going on?" Kurt hollered to be heard over his son's crying. He was completely shocked at what he had just witnessed. It wasn't like his sweet little stepdaughter to harm her little half brother.

"Aurora Rose, did you push the baby down?" Steph asked sternly looking over at her daughter as her husband handed the baby over to her.

The three year old's eyes began to well up with tears. Mommy and Kurt were looking at her with mad eyes. She didn't like it.

"Baby taken my toys..." Aurora muttered back while she rubbed one of her eyes with her hand. Why couldn't her mommy see that she was only defending what was hers?

"That's no excuse!" Stephanie scolded bringing Andrew close to her in an attempt to soothe him so that he would stop crying.

"Is he okay? Do you think he hurt his head on the carpet. She really shoved him hard." Angle asked with worry, bringing his own hand to the back of Andy's head.

"I think he's okay. He just got scared." Steph replied before then giving the baby a few kisses.

Aurora couldn't understand why her mommy was making such a big deal over the baby falling on the carpet. He didn't have a booboo. He was probably just crying so she would get in trouble with Mommy. Daddy was right when he said that baby Andrew wanted to take her mommy away from her.

"Aurora, I want you to come over here, tell your little brother that you're sorry, and give him a hug." Stephanie told her oldest in a much calmer voice since the baby was finally settling down now.

"No!" She screamed back with defiance giving a foot stomp for good measure.

Stephanie's eyebrows lifted and she placed her free hand on her hip. It was obvious that the child was unusually cranky and needed to have some consequences for her unacceptable behavior.

"Aurora Rose Levesque, either you come over here and apologize to your baby brother or I am going to sit you on the stairs for timeout. What's it going to be?"

"He not my baby brother! I no like him and the baby in Mommy's tummy! I want them go away!" Aurora hollered before she kicked one of the baby's toys as hard as she could, sending it tumbling across the room.

Both Stephanie and Kurt's jaws fell wide open. Both pairs of eyes were as big as saucers. Neither of them had any idea what had brought on Aurora's tantrum nor where her feelings about Andrew and the new baby had stemmed from. Before Stephanie could even react to the sudden unexpected outburst, Aurora ran from the room.

"Take him, I need to find out what's going on with her." Stephanie muttered as she handed over the one year old to his father.

Stephanie walked briskly after her daughter. It wasn't hard to figure out where she had gone off to. The sound of her stomping her feet up the staircase made it obvious that she was going upstairs to her room. On the way up the stairs, Steph decided that she needed to be careful about how she approached her little girl. The child was obviously upset about something and it was up to her to find out what it was that was bothering her. After all, a three year old doesn't just one day stop loving her sibling. Something was going on, and she was going to get to the bottom of it.

"Aurora?" She called out gently after peeking her head into her three year old's bedroom.

Aurora Rose was lying in her bed with her face hiding in her pillow. She was hugging her stuffed sea otter that her father had bought her at the aquarium. Stephanie could hear her baby girl's muffled cries from where she stood in the doorway, and it broke her heart. Steph quickly approached her daughter's bed, taking a seat on the edge of the right side.

"Sweetheart, come here, please tell Mommy why you're so upset." Stephanie pled in a hushed voice while she quickly lifted her daughter off her pillow and placed her in her arms, holding her like she had done when she was a little baby like Andrew.

"Andrew want to take you way from me. He want all your hugs and kisses with not any for me, Mommy. It his and his daddy fault that my daddy not live wif you and me." Aurora explained through her tears. She was finally voicing to her mother what had been bouncing around in her little mind ever since her daddy had put it there weeks ago.

Stephanie couldn't believe what she was hearing out of the mouth of her own child. She couldn't fathom how her little girl had even come up with those conclusions. Someone had to have planted those nasty thoughts in her head. But who would do such a thing to her innocent child? She couldn't even think of anyone who would want to cause that kind of emotional damage to a three year old.

"None of that is true, Aurora. Mommy would never _ever_ stop loving you. And I love you just as much as I do Andrew. Who told you that? Someone had to have told you those lies. Tell Mommy, who said that to you?" Stephanie asked in a very serious tone of voice that made Aurora a bit uneasy. She looked like she didn't want to tell her mommy who had told her. Mommy looked angry and she didn't want to get her daddy in trouble.

"Aurora, who said that to you? You don't keep secrets from me, I'm your mommy. Please, sweetheart, tell me who said that to you." Stephanie pressed on.

"Daddy..." Aurora admitted in her sweet innocent voice.

Stephanie looked horrified. Her face contorted into a look of anguish as she tried desperately to wrap her mind around the idea of her ex-husband filling their daughter's head with such hurtful thoughts. In her mind, she kept wanting to not believe it. Lately, he had seemed to be making such an effort to be a positive force in their child's life. But why would her three year old lie? Suddenly all of Aurora's acting out toward her little brother as of late was making sense. It was all because of the lies he had subjected her to. And for what? What did he gain by doing that? It only caused his little girl pain.

"You're daddy said all this to you? Did he say anything else that made you feel sad?" Steph asked doing her best to hold back her own tears. She wanted to know every hurtful thing that he had said to their child.

"He say that the hiding baby make you sick and it almost losted. He not like the hiding baby. He want it go away." Aurora admitted giving her best recap of what her father had told her in her room at his house two nights ago.

Stephanie let out a long exhale as she could begin to feel her anger build up inside of her. He had told Aurora not only about the pregnancy but the fact that she had almost lost her third child. Where did he get off telling her that? And he wanted her to lose the baby? What the hell was going on in his mind that would allow him to say something so off the wall to his three year old daughter?

"Mommy? What wrong, you mad at me?" Aurora asked with a look of worry on her face.

"No, sweetheart. I could never be mad at you for telling Mommy the truth. I want you to always be honest with me and tell me anything that Daddy says that you don't understand or that hurts your feelings. Daddy was so very wrong to say those things to you. I love you _so_ much. And Andrew _is_ your little brother because he was hiding inside the same tummy as you were, just like this new tiny baby that's growing inside of me right now. You and Andy are my babies and it hurts my heart to know that your daddy would lie to you." Stephanie cried hugging her little girl tightly in her arms as she rocked back and forth on the edge of the bed.

"I sorry, Mommy..." Aurora whimpered through tears.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, sweetheart. You did nothing wrong. It's Daddy who needs to be sorry."

Stephanie cradled her little in her arms, rocking back and forth, over and over again until she saw that Aurora had fallen asleep. Slowly and with great care, she gently laid the three year old down on the bed before slipping out of the room so that she could go get her cell.

"What happened? Did you find out what that was all about?" Angle asked his wife the minute she re-entered the living room.

"Not now, we'll talk later." She muttered back before grabbing her cell phone and darting back out of the room.

"Son of a bitch..." She sneered when Paul's voicemail automatically played the second she tried to call him. She wasn't about to leave a voice message about all of this.

She felt completely blindsided by her daughter's testimony about her former husband. She was still trying to come to terms with the fact that he had actually said those things to their baby girl. She thought he was doing so well by their child. Perhaps that's what he wanted her to think. If he could tell his own three year old lies, why not her too?

Steph needed to speak to someone who knew what was going on with Paul. Someone he had confided in and trusted to tell what exactly he was feeling this whole time. And then she remembered what Paul had said about Shawn; how he had confided in him more than he should have. Surely Shawn would be able to shed some light on all of this shit. After all, her father had told her to call him about his upcoming storyline. He was already expecting her call.

Stephanie quickly found his name in her business contacts and hit send to dial. She tried telling herself to stay calm, cool, and collected when it came time to speak with him. He didn't have to know her current emotional state. She just wanted him to tell her what was going on with his friend, her ex-husband.

"Hi Shawn, it's Stephanie, how are you?"

"Hey Steph, I'm doing good. I'm excited about the upcoming programming! The Heartbreak Kid is back baby! Woo! Let's talk storylines!" He said back with enthusiasm.

"A-Actually Shawn, I needed to ask you something on a more personal note. It's-It's Paul. Umm, I don't know how to ask you this but...Has he confided in you about anything he feels bad about that had to do with my child? I need to know what's going on with him. And I know that you're his best friend in the whole world."

There was a long pause before Shawn came back with a response to her question.

"I think I know what you're talking about and, Steph, I told you before that Paul had really been taking the divorce hard. I mean, pushing a baby off a sofa has got to be an all time low for anyone. I'm just glad he came clean with you about it. To be honest, I haven't talked to him in a while, we sort of lost touch a few months back ..."

Stephanie felt like she had slipped into a catatonic state of being. She was speechless. Shawn's words after 'pushing a baby off a sofa' started to become fainter and fainter until she could no longer hear him at all. Her mind was racing a mile a minute, but she couldn't think or keep any of it straight. She felt numb and light headed. She plopped down in one of her kitchen chairs, almost losing her balance. The room was starting to spin around her like it was her own personal hellish Ferris wheel that would never stop. Sadly, her husband had been right about Paul Levesque and she had been woefully wrong.


	60. Chapter 60

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Sixty

"Steph? Stephanie, are you there?" Shawn asked repeatedly after he took note of the silence on the phone after he had told her about Paul.

It was taking her a few moments to pull herself together so that she could respond to Michaels. She really didn't want her raw emotions to spill out while she was on the phone with him. While he was a long time employee and family friend, she really didn't want him knowing her current emotional state. Maybe Paul was okay with him knowing all of his problems and private thoughts, but she wasn't. After all, he wasn't her best friend, he was her ex's; and therefore, there was a chance that anything she told him would make it back to Levesque.

Steph couldn't help but remember back to the previous month at the Night of Champions pay-per-view when Shawn had tried to talk to her about Paul's current emotional state. God, she should have listened to him. But no, she had been quick to say that Levesque wasn't her problem anymore. She felt so stupid for dismissing the conversation. Paul's psychological state was indeed her problem because it had led to her little daughter being hurt.

"Yeah, I'm here, Shawn. Listen, I'm sorry. I know I called you and that we are suppose to go over the storyline details, but I'm suddenly not feeling up to it. You see, I'm pregnant again, and I've been battling some pretty bad nausea so far into the pregnancy. Would you mind terribly if I just had one of my lead writers get in touch with you?"

"Oh, sure, no problem, honey, and congratulations on the pregnancy. Before I let you go, I also want to say that you guys are all in my prayers. I just hope that someday soon you, Kurt, and Paul can all be on the same page and be a family for your little ones. All children deserve to grow up in a happy healthy home."

Michaels words that were intended to be kind, almost caused Stephanie to lose control of her emotions before she could get him off the phone. Up until recently, she was confident that things were on the right track with her ex-husband's involvement in their daughter's life. How wrong she had been, and how sorry she was feeling now for her three year old. Aurora Rose deserved better. She deserved to have that complete, healthy, and secure family that Shawn had mentioned.

"Thanks Shawn, you take care. Bye." Steph quickly said back to be polite before she ended the call.

She carelessly tossed her Blackberry onto her kitchen table before bringing her hands up to her face. Her finger tips, she used to sweep away the tears that escaped from her eyes . Stephanie sighed anxiously, she felt helpless.

Meanwhile upstairs, Aurora Rose was waking up from her extremely short nap. She had had a much longer one during the car ride back home from Nashua, but she might have slept a little longer if not for noticing her mother's absence when she first opened her eyes.

Aurora rubbed her eyes and slid out of her big girl bed in search of her mother. She didn't like the fact that Mommy had left her in room. She was going to go find her so that she could hold her some more. The three year old loved her Mommy and was so happy that her mother had disproven the idea that baby Andrew was Mommy's favorite.

Aurora Rose held each one of the wooden spindles on her way down the stairs. Once she reached the last step, she hopped onto the wooden floor of the vestibule and immediately began to run down the hall toward the kitchen.

"Mommy!" Aurora shouted out in a pouty voice as she ran over to her mother and jumped into her lap.

"Hi honey, that was a quick little nap." Steph voiced back trying to sound completely normal so that her three year old wouldn't sense how upset she was.

"You weft me..." She whispered softly, wrapping her arms around her mother's neck while in her lap.

"I didn't leave you, sweetheart. You fell asleep so I laid you down and went downstairs to make a phone call. I would never leave my baby girl. Muah." Stephanie stated before giving her daughter a kiss and a tight squeeze.

"Ma-ma-ma!"

The sound of her one year old calling out to her turned Steph's attention to the hallway that lead into the living room. Baby Andrew was toddling in toward her and Aurora with a smile on his face. It was clear that Daddy Kurt wasn't doing that great of a job watching their son because here he was coming into the kitchen without his father following after him.

"Are you coming to see Mommy and your big sister, Aurora?" Steph gushed as she then lifted her son into her lap as soon as he approached her.

Being with her two children was enough to make her smile even after all the terrible shit she had just been dealt about her ex-husband. Seeing her son and daughter smiling and happy because they were with her, allowed her to take her mind off of it all.

"I love you two. My little angels." Steph whispered giving both of them kisses and hugs.

"I sorry I pushed baby brother, Mommy." Aurora confessed completely on her own volition.

"I know you are, sweetheart. And thank you for saying that you were sorry." replied Stephanie before giving her daughter another kiss and then turning to look at her little boy.

Steph's eyes narrowed slightly as they fixated on the small bruise on the side of her son's head. While she had seen the blemish on her baby's soft skin many times before since it happened days ago, it was now that she was viewing it in a different light. She remembered the circumstances to which her child had gotten the bruise, and now she was questioning the validity of it.

"Hey Aurora, do you remember how baby brother got the booboo on the side of his head?" She then asked her little girl knowing that the three year old had witnessed what had actually happened.

Aurora Rose blinked her eyes a few times. Her little mind turned while she decided if she wanted to tell her mommy the truth about how she had pushed the baby down. She was scared that her mother would be upset to know that she had hurt her baby brother.

"Did someone push Andrew into the table to make him get a booboo?" Steph then asked, making her question more specific to what she was driving at since her daughter didn't respond to the first question.

The three year old began to nod her head. She was telling her mommy the truth without even saying that it was her who did it.

Stephanie felt her anger begin to spike yet again. The way that her daughter had responded to her question confirmed what she feared. Paul had been the cause of her baby son falling into the glass coffee table. He had obviously lied to her face about it; lied with his child standing right there after she had witnessed it all. No wonder why Aurora thought it was okay to push Andrew down, she saw her father do it.

Enough was enough; she was done getting second hand information from those around her. She needed to go straight to the source and confront Paul with all of the disturbing information she had obtained.

He was probably at his house since he had just come back from visiting his family. She was going to have to get Kurt to watch the kids so she could go to him. That was going to be easier said than done because of how overprotective he was being with her. Since she was in her delicate pregnant state, he would surely not want her leaving the house. And God knew that she couldn't even hint at the fact that she was going to her ex's. He would want to know why and if he knew that he had been right about Levesque hurting their child, Angle would lose it and go after him himself.

"Hey babe, you mind watching the kids for a little bit?" Stephanie asked bringing her children back into the living room where Kurt was sitting on the couch playing with his phone.

Her request made him put his phone down on the sofa beside him and look up at her with a face that surely meant that he wanted her to elaborate on what she was planning on doing.

" I want to take a drive. I'm just need to get out of the house and get some relaxation. Not being able to work has made me like I'm stir crazy and after Aurora was acting up, I just need some peace and quiet. So will you watch them?" She asked again this time after she had given what she thought was a good enough explanation as to why she wanted to go out.

"Yeah, sure. I can do that for you, honey. You need to be relaxed, because we don't want to take any chances of you possibly miscarrying. Just take your cell with you and call me if you need anything, okay?"

"I will, and please, while I'm gone, stay off your phone; a three and one year old need your undivided attention." Steph requested still holding her one year old in her arms while her daughter went back to playing with her doll house.

"You got it, babe. No cell phone, only playtime. Let me see my little buddy."

Angle arose from the sofa with his arms extended for the baby to be handed over to him. Steph flashed a quick smile before giving him the child.

"Okay, I'll be back. I love you." Steph said, she was speaking to both her husband and her children.

"I go too, Mommy?" piped Aurora before Angle was able to reply with a 'love you too'.

"Nah, you're staying with me, Princess. You can pick out any movie you want to watch or I can read you and Andrew a book." Angle offered in an attempt to persuade the child to want to stay at home with him and her younger sibling.

"Yay! I wanna read Pink-a-wishus!" The three year old exclaimed before she ran and grabbed her hardcover book called, Pinkalicious, from her small bookshelf near her dollhouse.

"Hurry back, Mommy. We love you." Kurt told his wife as he sat down on the sofa with his son in his lap.

Steph then watched as Aurora came running over to her step-father and climbed up into his lap so that he could read the book to her and her little brother.

"Love you guys more." Steph said back before she left the living room and allowed her husband to work his magic of keeping both of her children pacified so that she could leave the house without anyone getting upset.

She glanced to make sure that her cell phone was indeed back inside her purse before she swung the handbag over her shoulder, grabbed her car keys, and then left the house through the garage. Steph wasted no time starting her Porsche up and backing it out into her driveway. And then, when it was time for her to put it in drive, she peeled out. She braked slightly before she swung out onto the back road after glancing in both directions to make sure it was safe.

It wasn't a far drive to her ex-husband's house. It was dusk when she pulled her Porsche Cayenne into his driveway. She focused her eyes on his spacious home where she could see illumination coming from some of the home's windows; that meant that he had to be home. Stephanie parked the small SUV right in front of his garage before she got out and ventured to his front door.

She raised an eyebrow and took a deep breath before bringing her hand to the doorbell to push the button causing a chime to echo through the home. She stood there waiting for what felt like forever. Maybe it was because she was so anxious to talk with him face to face. Steph began tapping her shoe impatiently on the slate stone porch. She then leaned forward and forcefully mashed in the door bell button repeatedly making the chimes go crazy on repeat.

"Whoever kept fucking with my doorbell, I'm going to kick you're-" Paul was hollering while opening his front door but immediately froze midsentence when he saw who it was who was standing on his front porch.

"Oh, hi, Steph. I thought you were some kids messing with me. What's up?" He asked with a smile in a much nicer voice.

The doorbell ringing had caused Levesque to get himself out of a hot shower. His muscular torso was still glistening with water, his hair was wet and slicked back like he had quickly ran his fingers through it, and his lower half was clothed by an open pair of jeans that he had obviously just thrown on to answer the door. He didn't even have any underwear on. His large frame took up most of the doorway. Paul made his muscles flex once, hoping that it was enough to get her attention.

"We need to talk. Can I come in?" She then asked looking directly into his hazel eyes and nowhere else.

"Yeah, sure." He said after a few seconds. Levesque was a little surprised that she hadn't even glanced at his manly physique that was on display right in front of her. He zipped up his jeans and moved out of the way so she could come in.

What was she doing over at his house without calling first? Wait, maybe she did try to call first. His cell phone had died earlier that day and he still couldn't figure out where he had put his charger when he had packed to come back from Nashua, hopefully he hadn't left it there.

Stephanie folded her arms in front of her chest before she entered the house. She stood in the vestibule, waiting for him to close the door behind her and then offer to lead her into his living room where they could discuss her reason for being there.

"Do you want a drink of water or juice or something?" He asked politely the moment she sat down on one of his sofas. She folded her legs after setting her handbag on his coffee table in front of her.

"No, I came over here to ask you about something serious, and I really hope that you will be completely honest with me." Steph began in an exhale.

She was going to do her best to stay completely calm and rational when approaching the reason for her visit. This, of course, was going to be no easy feat since the topic at hand had to do with endangering the welfare of her children both physically and mentally. She was growing increasingly concerned with how he was going to respond to her accusations.

Levesque narrowed his eyes before plopping down in the sofa that was directly across from the one that she was sitting on. He began to try and rack his brain, trying to figure out what the hell she could be there to discuss with him where she would think that he wouldn't be honest with her.

"Oh God, I can't believe I'm going to even say this out loud. I still can't believe it." She scoffed before she then started to get teary eyed. All the emotions that she had felt when she had spoken to Shawn were resurfacing.

The fact that Stephanie was having a hard time expressing to him why she was there and her getting emotional while trying to do so, really made Levesque wonder if she was about to finally divulge her feelings for him. Perhaps she was going to confide in him about how much she had subconsciously loved their kiss in the kitchen. Maybe she had kept thinking about it, even after being back together with her Olympic Wonder boy. God that would be great! But first things first, she had to say it all in her own words. He would help her get over her fear of telling him that she was still in love with him.

"What is it, Steph?" Paul asked sympathetically while reaching forward to touch her hands that were on her knees.

"Paul, I don't know any nice way to ask you this so I'm just going to ask you bluntly: Did you push my son off my living room sofa last month when you were over at my house?" Stephanie quickly retorted after jerking away from his touch.

At that moment, Paul felt his high hopes come crashing down into the cold hard reality of the situation. It was like he was being revisited by the sins of his past. How did she even know about that when it happened over a month ago? Why was it coming up now? Things had been going so well between them and now this?

He looked on at her speechless for a moment or so. Of course to him it felt like so much longer than that. He was trying to figure out what his best course of action would be. Should he lie and say that he didn't know what she was talking about? After all, no one else besides him and the baby were in the room when it happened. How the hell did she even know about it? This didn't make sense at all.

"What? Did I miss something? What are we talking about here?" Paul finally said. He was trying to get her to elaborate more on how she knew about the incident before he was willing to give her a definitive answer.

"Don't bullshit me, Paul. You know what I'm talking about. The day you were over visiting Aurora and Kurt had come back home early because Karen wasn't going to let him see his kids. Aurora and I were out on the back porch with Kurt and Andrew was left in the living room with you. He fell while you were in the room with him, and then you went home after. Kurt went on and on for the last month saying you had something to do with our baby falling. I told him that there was no way possible that you would ever hurt a child, let alone one of my children..." Steph explained as she started to really tear up.

Without saying a word back, Paul lowered his head in shame. Hearing her re-account for that fateful day really made him reflect on his past actions a month ago. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he would never do anything to harm baby Andrew now. But Steph hadn't asked him that. She wanted to know what he had done that day. He was guilty, no matter how much he didn't want to be, it wouldn't change it.

"You did push him, didn't you? Shawn told me that you had admitted it to him. Why would you do that? Why would you deliberately hurt my baby son?" sobbed Steph while the tears streamed down her face without her attempting to wipe them away.

Paul let out a deep breath before leaning over and putting his face in his hands. It was Shawn that had told her. His own best friend, Shawn Michaels, had sold him down the river by telling his ex-wife about something that was told to him in confidence. And why? How would that even come up in a conversation?

"Are you going to say something? At least own up to what you did! Only a fucking coward would hurt an innocent little baby!" Stephanie screamed out in anger.

"I'm so sorry, Steph. There's really no excuse I can give that will suffice for what I did. I-I told Shawn right after it happened because I felt so terrible. I was sitting there looking at the baby and when I looked at him all I saw was Angle. I thought back to how mad I was when I found out that the baby boy you were pregnant with wasn't mine. I lost it. And-and then I knew I couldn't bring myself to tell you what I did. I know it would be inexcusable because of how much your kids mean to you." Levesque explained in a voice of sincerity.

"You're right, there is no excuse for it! My one year old never did anything to you! If you were mad at me and Kurt, you should have taken it out on us, _not_ him!" She sobbed before continuing:

" I can't believe you! My heart is literally breaking right now because I know that I entrusted you with my child multiple times while I was sick! I don't even want to think about it!" She cried placing her hands on the side of her head while she leaned forward and continued to weep. The thought that she had put her child into harm's way by leaving him in her ex-husband's care made her feel sick to her stomach.

"Steph, it's not like that. I swear to you. When I came over that first day I found you with morning sickness, I looked down at the little boy, right in his blue eyes, and you know what I saw? I saw you and from that moment on, I knew that I could love that little boy because he was a part of you." Levesque whispered in a raspy voice now looking at her while he spoke.

He was fighting back tears of his own. It killed him seeing Stephanie in tears and knowing that he was the cause of it.

"And I'm suppose to believe that when Andy took a header into the glass coffee table during your watch on Monday? I even asked our daughter, she said he was pushed into the glass! Are you going to try and deny it? You want to call our three year old a liar, Paul?" She quickly retorted folding her arms in front of her to show her lack of trust in his words.

"You got to be kidding me! Aurora was the one who pushed the kid! She shoved him because he had had a hold of the drawing she made for you. It happened before I could even react. I told you he tripped over his toys because I didn't want to get Aurora into trouble!" Levesque explained giving her the complete truth of what had happened.

"And I'm suppose to believe that you admitted to me that you shoved him off of the sofa a month before. You've lied to me so much, Paul, I don't think I can even trust you..."

"Aurora didn't say that I did it, though, right? All she agreed to was that he was pushed. I'm telling you, Steph. I swear on all I hold sacred that I didn't push the baby into the coffee table! Our three year old did it because she's going through some sibling rivalry phase or something!" He explained further raising his voice as if he was hoping that doing so would make what he was saying get through to her better.

"Sibling rivalry?" She asked in a loud booming voice similar to her father's. She got up from the couch and stood over him before continuing.

"I think you should be able to tell me all about the sibling rivalry between our three year old and my one year old because according to Aurora, that's your fault too! Aurora told me in tears that you told her that Andrew was taking me away from her, that I wasn't going to give her love and attention anymore? She told me that you told her about my almost miscarriage and made her not want the new baby! Paul, how the fuck do you justify saying all of that to our child? Do you have any idea how psychologically damaging that is to do, not to mention hurtful? Explain this one to me, Paul! This I have to hear!" She scoffed while she tucked her hair behind her ears.

Leveque didn't want to say anything in reply, because he knew that nothing he could say could possibly make up for all she had just said. It was all true. In his anger and jealousy with Stephanie and Kurt's new life together, he had allowed himself to lose sight of what should have been most precious and important to him: his daughter. He knew that now, and was trying to make a mends for his past actions on his own, but now his ex-wife knew about all of it.

"I'm sorry, Steph...I'm so sorry. You were right about all those things I said to Aurora. I never should have, because I love our daughter more than life itself. I said a lot of that in anger-"

"Anger Paul, really? Do you know how many times I wanted to curse your name aloud but I didn't because our daughter was there with me? I would NEVER do that because I wouldn't want to hurt my child!" Steph screamed pointing her finger down at him as she spoke.

"You don't know how hard I've been trying to make things right with you! I've been busting my ass trying to be that man that you fell in love with! I bent over backwards to help you when you were sick, hell Steph, I even took you to the hospital so you didn't lose that unborn baby!" Levesque finally yelled back getting up from his seat. He pointed right at her abdomen when he mentioned her and Angle's unborn child.

"Yes and-"

"Be quite, it's my turn to talk now, damn it! I put up with your father and your new piece of shit husband when all I wanted to do was pummel their asses for taking you away from me! I'm not perfect, Steph, but guess what, neither are you!"

"Kurt and my father didn't take me away from you, _I chose_ to leave you! I love Kurt! And you're right, I'm not perfect and neither is Kurt, but what we have is real! And say what you want about his past relationship or his addiction to painkillers, but I know he would never EVER hurt Aurora like you have, neither physically or emotionally!" She screamed in his face before moving back to his point about his good deeds:

"And we can talk about what you did for me when I was sick, and I appreciated it, Paul, I told you then I did. But from what I know now about what you were up to behind my back, I think you were doing all of it in your own sick and twisted attempt to make me feel sorry for divorcing you! And I'll tell you right now, you will never make me sorry I left you for Kurt!" She admitted with a sneer sticking her chin out as she spoke the words that she knew would cut him to the quick.

Levesque just stood there with his mouth parted open slightly. His bearded jaw was quivering as his hazel eyes sparkled with tears that were forming in them. He felt like he was being knifed repeatedly in the heart without any relief. He had taken verbal tongue lashings before but none of them compared to this; being delivered such devastating blows from the woman he thought was the love of his life.

He had thought for a moment about bringing up their kiss in the kitchen, or the one he gave her while she was mostly asleep. She also didn't even know that he had she had cuddled with him in her and Angle's bed one of the nights he had slept over. But would telling her about all of those things really change anything? No, it would make it that much worse. Stephanie already believed that his personal growth as a man and a father was simply a ruse to win her back; that was so hurtful to him.

"Steph...please, give me a chance to make all of this right." He whispered as the fresh tears began to flow down his cheeks. He felt like his life was on the line, as if her reply to his plea would be the deciding factor of whether or not he would enjoy the rest of his life or not.

"No...it was bad enough when you put me through an affair, a miscarriage, and a divorce, but when you start putting my babies through hell, I can't forgive and forget that. For so long I had faith in you to be the daddy that Aurora Rose deserved, but that's gone now. I want Kurt to raise her with me. I think that's the best thing for her." Stephanie whispered back before sniffing back her congestion as she walked over and grabbed her hand bag.

As she started to walk out of his living room to leave through the front door, Paul moved to cut her off. There was no way he was just going to stand there without trying to do or say something to keep all of this from happening.

"Steph..." He cried while at the same time he caught her hand with his and turned her back to look at him.

"I don't want to know you anymore, Paul Michael Levesque." She muttered back with a cold stare before then freeing her hand from his grasp.

She had delivered the final and fatal blow to his heart. Levesque sank to his knees on the plush carpet floor when he heard the sound of his front door opening and then slamming shut. Paul began to sob aloud like a baby as he rocked back and forth. He had tried so hard to change for Stephanie and their daughter, but his past sins had caught back up to him. It was so hard for him to take. He had come so far with building up his relationship with his little girl, that the thought of not being able to be in her life anymore, was too terrible to even imagine.


	61. Chapter 61

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Sixty-One

Paul was a broken man. After completely losing his composure with the coming of his former wife's departure, he was drawn upstairs to his daughter's bedroom like moth to a burning flame. Perhaps it was his pathetic attempt of comforting himself after being told that he would no longer have the right to see his child.

He sat on the edge of the bed. His hazel eyes slowly scanned each and every toy that litter the carpet floor: stuffed animals, Barbie dolls, and pink plastic teacups. It was all untouched from where she had left it. The cheerful pink room felt so lifeless and empty now as he sat in it by himself. This had to be like what a parent of a deceased child went through. Being surrounded by things that remind you of said child and knowing that she would never be back inside that room, let alone in her parent's life. It felt the same with Aurora. Thank God she wasn't gone from this world, but for Paul being banished from being with her, it felt like he had truly lost her.

Levesque's mind was still in a haze when he reached into the pink and yellow nightstand beside his daughter's bed, and removed her favorite possession at Daddy's house: the photo album. In the light of the room, his eyes immediately focused on the square picture on the front. His large muscular frame began to tremble while he gazed upon him and Stephanie with their baby daughter. That album, that he held in his hands, contained what had been most precious in all of the world to him. Slowly, he ran his thumb over the picture while a fresh tear dripped from his eye, running down his bearded face.

As if he was rubbing salt in his own open wound, Paul pressed on, slowly opening the album cover to reveal the contents. He began to breakdown again at the sight of all the pictures from his and Steph's life together. Each and every milestone captured in a picture was like a frozen memory in time that he could never have back. It was over. And, God, did he wish he would have had the chance to do things differently.

Levesque let out a low painful sob after snapping the album closed; there was no way he was going to be able to look through it in its entirety, his heart just couldn't take it. Slowly he shifted the album off of his lap and allowed it to rest on his child's bed. His hands, he then placed at his side, both thumbs began to play with the denim belt loops.

He wasn't wearing a belt, he contemplated, as his thoughts started drifting to a darker place. The vivid imagery of knotting one of the leather belts around his neck and hanging himself right there in his three year old's closet came seeping into his head. He could use one of the belts that Steph had bought him during their marriage, that'd be fucking poetic. Paul wasn't afraid to die. Hell, he had lost everything that mattered in his life, so why not?

Then suddenly he thought about his baby girl. It was going to be hard enough on the both of them that they couldn't see each other anymore. Aurora Rose would be completely crushed if Daddy took his own life, leaving her forever, because of his own selfish reasons. Shit, and it wouldn't be just his daughter who would be devastated by his suicide. The thought of his mother and father having to bury their own son was too terrible to imagine. Levesque knew that he couldn't do that to the people he loved. Death wasn't the answer, but life, at this moment, felt utterly impossible without his child in it.

* * *

Stephanie's sparkling blue eyes stared blankly at the plain white garage wall. She was just sitting there in the driver seat of her Porsche. The engine was off, the garage door down, all that was left for her to do was go into the house where her family awaited her return. Steph was hesitating; so much so that she had taken a scenic drive after leaving her ex-husband's home. It had been during her night drive of the back roads of Greenwich, that she allowed herself to have a catharsis. The purging of her raw emotions was through her tears. Tears not just out of anger for her ex, but also out of sadness for Aurora.

She massaged her hands on the leather steering wheel, telling herself mentally to keep it together. She couldn't sit in her garage all night. Well, she could, but she wasn't going to. Steph felt a little trepidation at the possibility of crying in her husband's presence. At the sight of tears, Kurt would immediately know that something was wrong. That was why she couldn't let that happen. The blow up between her and Paul was over. She was relieved to be back home with her husband and children, and so, she would act like it.

Stephanie took a moment to stand back in the hallway and surveyed the scene in the living room. The sight that she returned home to, mirrored the one she had seen before she left. Both Andrew and Aurora were still in Kurt's lap, but now they were asleep. Her husband was watching the television, but seemed quite tentative while holding the two sleeping children within his muscular arms. He was having to hold them both in place so neither one of them would slump over in their slumber. Any onlooker would easily assume that both children were his. The sight spoke volumes to Stephanie because it validated her view of him as a worthy father figure for her three year old daughter. Not that she had any doubts before, but after finding out about Paul's enormous shortcomings in that role, Kurt definitely looked like the best choice for both of her children. He didn't seem to be favoring his biological child over his stepdaughter.

"Hi babe, you okay? You were gone for a long while." Angle inquired in a soft whisper once he saw his wife enter the living room, making her presence known to him.

"I'm okay. I see you literally have your hands full. What time did my babies conk out?" She asked back matching his voice volume with hers. She figured that if she could keep the focus on her children instead of on her, she stood a better chance of keeping her emotions in check.

"They both crashed not even a half an hour ago. I didn't even think to get them ready for bed. They were little balls of energy one minute and the next they were dead to the world." He explained as Stephanie approached him.

Steph smiled weakly while reaching down to pick up her sleeping daughter so that she could take her up to bed. She was careful not to wake her as she lifted her up into her arms.

"So what's going on? Why did you need to take a long drive?" Angle asked again as he too slowly rose to his feet with his sleeping one year old still in his arms after shutting off the flat screen television.

"Shh, we'll talk about it after we get the kids to bed." She whispered back taking the lead in carrying her child out of the living room with her husband following closely behind.

"I have to fly out to Tennessee tomorrow morning. Mike called earlier and already made the arrangements for us to fly out. We need to get this Karen bullshit wrapped up quick." Kurt divulged in a low voice as they ascended the stairs.

"I'm sure it will be fine." She muttered back when they reached the second floor. Steph really didn't have much else to say on the subject. Her mind was still focused on her own drama.

When both children were safe and soundly tucked into bed, the Angles adjourned to their master bedroom. After nighttime routines in the master bathroom, Kurt and Steph went to their respective sides of the bed and immediately began to undress.

"Okay, so what's going on with Aurora?" He asked after taking his t-shirt off to reveal his muscular torso.

Angle had been left wondering for most of the evening why Aurora had acted out the way she had, and what had transpired between his wife and her child to make her need to go out for a drive. He didn't attempt to probe Aurora Rose while she was left in his care; he didn't feel it was his place to do so. Kurt trusted that Stephanie would fill him in when the time was right. Well that time had come now, and he was awaiting a response.

"Oh she was just acting out because she was over tired and a little jealous of the baby. I talked to her, it's taken care of." Steph answered back nonchalantly to play it all off. She didn't want him to know the magnitude of the situation. She had handled it herself, so there was no reason for him to know every little detail.

Stephanie had purposely changed into her night shirt with her back to her husband's side of the bed . She was afraid that he might have picked up on a look on her face while she spoke about the situation. Steph really didn't think she could have a poker face when it came to matters concerning her children.

"I just think it's weird that she acted like that. Aurora's always been good with Andrew since he was born." Angle pointed out stepping out of his shorts before he got into the bed with just his white briefs on.

Steph didn't reply. She didn't want Kurt to find out that it was Paul who was responsible for Aurora's jealousy of her younger brother. Hell, she didn't even want to think about it. The idea of her three year old daughter thinking in her little head that her mommy could love one of her children over the other, made her sick to her stomach.

"You okay, Steph? You've been acting a little weird since you got home." He then asked narrowing his eyes after seeing the look on Stephanie's face. Her look of worry was finally enough to compel him to ask what was wrong.

His inquiry caused her tears to begin to flow again. She quickly brought her hand up to her face to wipe them away, hoping that her husband wouldn't notice. But he did, and Angle was quick to speak up again because of her reaction.

"Baby, what is it? Whatever it is, you can tell me. I'm here for you and I love you." Kurt professed in a gentle voice as he inched his body across the bed to her side, and pulled back the sheets for her to get in.

Hearing his loving words of concern for her was enough to bring forth a weak smile as she took his invitation to slide into bed with him. It was the simple things about Angle that she appreciated. Not only was he loving to her, but she knew that he loved both of her children; not just the baby son that they had made together, but Aurora Rose too. That's where Kurt was a better man than her former husband.

Him pleading with her to divulge the reason she was so upset almost made her do just that. It wasn't like she wanted to protect her ex from the wrath of Kurt; after all, the bastard did deserve to have his ass kicked for what he had put her children through. Still, the thought of causing more drama and heartache for her family, compelled her to keep quiet about her encounter with Paul. Sure he was going to find out the details eventually when she petitioned to have sole custody of her three year old, but there was no reason to fill him in now, when it had all just happened. It was raw and fresh in her memory. There was no way she could tactfully explain it all to him without causing him to fly off the handle. Stephanie definitely already had enough drama for the day. She wasn't going to cause more with Kurt.

"It's-it's just the pregnancy hormones making me an emotional mess." She heard herself lie in a voice that she didn't believe sounded very convincing.

Perhaps Angle felt the same way; his blue eyes were cast upon her with a look of uncertainty. While her excuse seemed plausible, he didn't look like he wanted to buy it. God, what if he was going to probe her for the real reason she was acting strange.

Steph instinctively bit her bottom lip as she awaited a response from her spouse who was closing the space between them in their king size bed.

"Well, I'm here for you. If there's anything I can do to help: a back rub, or maybe another kind of rub." Angle replied with a smirk. He had slowly and deliberately rubbed his lower half into hers to entice her as he spoke.

"Mhm, that's a tempting offer, but you know that the doctor said that we can't make love this week." admitted Steph with a smile of her own as she then felt his hand then begin to rub her inner thigh.

"I don't think I can wait a week to have you." He breathed with a large amount of sexual frustration and lust within his words while his hands began to further explore her body.

Experiencing pleasure from his touch, she felt her libido begin to kick in, driving away all of the angst and sadness she had brought home with her. Stephanie moved her hands to him, while at the same time, she caught his lips with hers. They both breathed deep in unison as their kiss turned passionate rather quickly. Their tongues moved rhythmically together as their tilted heads bobbed up and down matching each other's want. Steph would have been completely into it if it wasn't for the feeling of his facial hair rubbing against her face. She abruptly broke the kiss causing both of their eyes to open before Kurt gave a look of confusion.

"You okay? He asked breathing heavy because of his arousal.

Stephanie brought her hand up to his face and ran her fingertips across his beard. She had been the one who told him to grow it in. A man with facial hair used to be such a turn on for her. Now, feeling it against her skin, it was a complete turn off.

As her manicured fingers nestled into the dark brown hairs, she quickly realized how much facial hair reminded her of Paul. God, he's the last person she wanted to be reminded of now.

"I don't think I like you with a beard. I know I asked you to grow it, but I changed my mind about it." She commented scrunching her nose up to show her disapproval.

Angle let out a small chuckle because of her new opinion about his appearance that had caused a break in their intimacy.

"I'll shave it off first thing tomorrow." He promised before moving quickly to bring his lips back to hers so they could get things going again.

More than satisfied with her husband's response, Steph took charge; shifting her position in bed so that she was now lying on top of him. Her brown locks of hair surrounded his face while she controlled the kiss. Angle's hands caressed her curves under both the covers and her garment.

Over and over again in her mind, Stephanie told herself that she was proving her unwavering love for Kurt Angle. She envisioned that she was doing so with Levesque right there in the master bedroom watching them. It would be a small amount of retribution for what he had put her and her babies through. Being with Angle felt so good, and knowing how angry Paul would be to see her in the throes of passion with him, made their encounter even hotter. Despite the fact that she had to refrain from intercourse, she was determined to make love to him.

Steph broke the lip lock again, but this time continued her wet kisses down the side of his neck. Kurt let out a soft moan and simply laid there and reveled in feeling her kisses on his skin. And then his lips pulled taunt into a smile when Stephanie's head moved under the covers and her mouth traced a path between his pectorals and then in the middle of his six pack.

Angle folded both arms behind his head when he felt the material of his brief slide against his skin. He bit his bottom lip in anticipation; knowing what he was going to be treated to. And then, came a wave of warm pleasure surging through his entire body. Kurt moaned her name in a whisper followed by a raunchy turn of phrase. He involuntarily arched his back slightly. His mouth remained gapped open; his eyes closed tight from the unrelenting pleasure he was experiencing courtesy of his wife. If he couldn't make love to her, this was certainly the next best thing.

* * *

Paul had been up all night. How could he ever be expected to sleep again with his personal life being in complete shambles? Having all night to reflect on where he now was in life, and how he had gotten to that point, Levesque had come to a conclusion. A conclusion to which he planned on acting on as soon as possible. For Paul, it felt like a lifetime in darkness before the sunlight brightened the New England sky. With the new day came his will to shower and dress in a simple pair of warm up pants and a t-shirt and pull his damp hair back in a loose ponytail. He took the time to bring with him a cherished item which he placed on the passenger seat of the Hummer before heading out to make good on his fateful decision.

As if the Humvee had been on autopilot, Levesque found himself driving into the parking garage of World Wrestling Entertainment headquarters. He had no recollection of the drive to Stamford; he was still very much in a mental haze due to the lack of both sleep and caring about himself.

After finding a sizable parking spot, Paul used the parking garage elevator to take him directly to the executive office level. A chime sounded signaling the elevator's arrival at the desired floor before the doors parted allowing him to exit. Levesque was like a man on a mission. He went straight for Mr. McMahon's office as soon as he got off the elevator, without being deterred by the few corporate employees who made it a point to greet him.

Before he could breach Vince's office, the receptionist quickly looked up and then glanced at McMahon's schedule for the day.

"Oh, Mr. Levesque, I don't believe Mr. McMahon has you penciled in for a meeting this morning? Mr. Levesque?" The little blonde receptionist said in a voice that was both polite and a bit nervous at the same time.

Paul continued onward, completely ignoring her words. He didn't bother calling ahead to make an appointment with the boss. For what he was going to tell him, he didn't need to.

"Please Mr. Levesque, Mr. McMahon has asked specifically not the be disturbed." She pleaded when she saw that he was going for the double doors that lead to Vince's office.

He wasn't going to abide by his former father-in-law's wishes. Following Mr. McMahon's rules was the absolute last thing on his mind at that point. This visit to titan tower was about him doing what he had to do, not placating to Vince.

With one quick tug of the handles, Paul sent McMahon's office doors flying open causing the wrestling tycoon to jump in his executive office chair. His brown eyes were wide. He looked quite surprised and startled to see his ex son-in-law barging into his office completely out of the blue, especially after he had blew off his obligations to the company on Tuesday.

"You've got a lot of nerve showing up here after what you pulled! Who let you in here? I told Jillian that I wasn't to be interrupted!" McMahon barked from his desk while watching Levesque cross into the large corporate office.

"I let myself in, Vince." Paul replied in an unexpectedly calm voice while his hazel eyes stared directly into the eyes of the man he had once thought of as a father.

"Well, you can let yourself out too, God damn it! I'm working here, which is something you've forgot about doing lately! You're lucky you still have a job in my company!" continued Vince as his face started to turn red from his intensity.

"That's actually why I'm here." answered back Levesque nonchalantly when he approached McMahon's desk.

In contrast to how upset Mr. McMahon was, that was how cool and calm Paul seemed to be. This was the first time that he had ever went face to face with Vince without letting his emotions run high. He wasn't angered by McMahon's ranting and raving. In fact, it didn't even phase him. After enduring Stephanie's wrath yesterday, this was nothing. He had already lost all he cared about, so right now, Vincent Kennedy McMahon was insignificant to him.

"Oh yeah, I'm sure that's why your here! You caught wind that you were out of the running for the move to RAW and number one contender spot for Jericho's WWE championship, so you decided to come here bright and early and beg me to reconsider you and give you the spot! Save it, Levesque! I wouldn't care if you came over here and bent over and puckered up to kiss my ass, I still wouldn't put you in the main event!" McMahon screamed slamming his fists down repeatedly on his desk.

"Well you can take that main event spot and shove it up your ass, Vince, because that's the furthest thing from my mind. I'm here to tell you that I'm finished with you and your company." Paul explained flatly in an uncharacteristically passive voice.

Vince breathed in before letting out a forced scoff in response to his statement. He almost looked humored by Levesque saying that he was done with the company, as if it was a big joke.

"Oh, that's funny. Am I suppose to buy into the idea that you're just going to walk away from this company? Spare me the 'playing hard to get' game, it's insulting! I'm calling your bluff, you're full of shit!" McMahon's voice boomed before he flashed a cocky smile and leaned back in his leather office chair.

"Well, believe what you want, but I'm telling you right now that I'm done; scratch Triple H off your talent roster. There's nothing left for me in WWE anymore." Paul explained folding his arms in front of him as he shrugged his shoulders.

He was speaking the truth. With all hope lost that he would ever get to be with Stephanie and their little girl, he didn't want to be a part of the company. Why would he put himself in the position to have to see the McMahon-Angle family as their employee and jobber? His heart wouldn't be able to take it; not because he wouldn't main event, but because he couldn't see himself continuing to wrestle in that company without Steph and Aurora at his side.

"I don't give a shit if you're a happy employee, you're under contract! I own _you_! I own Triple H! You walk out on me and you will find yourself in one sweet lawsuit, boy! I will make it so you _never _step inside of a ring again!" hollered McMahon as he rose to his feet with such force that he knocked his chair backwards onto the floor.

"Sue me for all the money in the world, Vince. I don't care. I wipe my ass with that contract, because it doesn't mean anything to me anymore. What mattered most was already taken from me." Levesque replied in a way that was reminiscent of his promo work as the Cerebral Assassin. Nothing his boss was saying was bothering him.

Feeling like he had said his piece to his former father-in-law, Paul turned his back on him and attempted to walk out the double doors of which he entered. McMahon wasn't finished with the conversation though. His loud arrogant voice stopped Levesque in his tracks as soon as he began to speak again.

"Oh I get it, this is about Stephanie. You've got sour grapes because she's moved on and found the real love of her life..." McMahon commented in a hiss that was accompanied by an evil smirk.

Vince had figured out his weakness and was hell bent on exploiting it to the hilt. He sashayed out from around his desk and began to make his way over to where Paul was still standing with his back to him.

"Oh yeah, you're jealous because you know that Kurt Angle is more of a husband and Daddy to Steph and Aurora than you ever were to them! Do you think Steph would give a shit if you left WWE? You're nothing to her! I'm sure that if she was given the chance, she'd erase you from her past! Kurt is her present and future, oh it's true! It's damn true!" Vince ranted after he strutted over to face Paul. He was now standing nose to nose with him.

McMahon's cruel sermon penetrated deep into Levesque's consciousness. It wasn't the fact that his ex father-in-law was saying those things to him. It was more of the fact that he knew that what he said was true because of what Stephanie, herself, had said the night before. She had told him that she no longer wished to know him. That, in itself, was the truth in black and white, and Vince attempting to scrub it in his face wasn't going to hurt him like hearing Steph say it did.

"Get out of my face..." Paul growled as he used his right hand to roughly wipe off the droplets of spit that had hit his face during Mr. McMahon's obnoxious insult.

"Oh what now, are you going to strike me? Go ahead, I'll give you a free shot! Come on, we can go!" Vince hollered, while at the same time he was removing his suit jacket and threw it on the floor. He balled his fists up and held them out like he was ready to fight right then and there.

Levesque just stood there glaring at the man who had once given to him his only daughter for marriage. If someone would have told Paul on the day of his wedding that the proud man who was walking his beautiful bride down the aisle would one day be so loathsome and disrespectful to him, he wouldn't have believed it. It was clear that after the affair with Michelle North had come to light, Paul had become detestable and worthless in Vince McMahon's eyes. The old man had gotten it in his mind that because he had been unfaithful, he could never redeem himself and be the man that Stephanie had fallen in love with and married.

"Come on, chicken shit! Let's go! Take the first shot! What, are you afraid to you get your ass kicked again like when you tried to take on Angle? Come on, damn it!" McMahon continued motioning with his hands for him to bring it. He was doing his best to try and bait Paul into taking a swing at him.

As much as Paul had come to despise his former father-in-law, he was not going to take him up on his offer to get physical. It wasn't that Vince didn't deserve an ass kicking, because he definitely did. The guy had been a constant thorn in his side before and after the divorce from Stephanie. If it had been months, hell, even weeks ago, Levesque would have gladly knocked him on his ass; But things had changed since then. Paul's life had taken a quick and severe spiral downward to the depths of which it might never reemerge. Mr. McMahon's insults had become as empty as Paul felt inside of himself.

Instead of indulging Vince, Levesque just shook his head and moved to circumvent McMahon and leave the office. Once he was out of there, he never looked back. This was it. He wasn't just leaving the WWE corporate building. When he walked out the doors of Titan Tower, it symbolized the end of a career that had spanned well over a decade.

While there was some nostalgic sadness leaving the company that he helped shape and grow, it was going to be nothing compared to what he was going to face when he arrived at his next destination. Paul Levesque may have been prepared to say goodbye to his career, but he wasn't ready to part with his little girl.


	62. Chapter 62

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Sixty-Two

Stephanie knelt beside the porcelain lined bathtub in a t-shirt and shorts that were both damp with warm bath water. Her hair, she had wisely gathered up into a loose bun on top of her head so it would not interfere with her bathing duties. She had decided to make her life easier by giving Aurora and Andrew their bath together, which proved to be quite a splashing good time.

"Okay, no more splashing, you two. Mommy already had her shower, I don't need another one." Steph laughed while lathering up the puppet cloth with Johnson & Johnson head-to-toe wash.

As traumatic and stressful as yesterday had been for both Stephanie and Aurora, this morning seemed to be a stark contrast. Despite all that had come to a head the day before, the three year old was in a surprisingly cheerful mood. All morning she had been the sweet and loving big sister that Stephanie knew that she could be. Everything falling into place during their morning routine helped Steph chase away all thoughts about her disdain for Paul.

Kurt had set off for the airport quite early. Before he left the house, he had made it a point to advise her to keep the nanny on duty during his absence so that she had a second pair of hands. In the last three hours since her arrival, Catherine had been just that, a helper; there to make Steph's life a little easier, while she, herself, performed all of her mommy duties.

"Now that I clean can baby broffer and me get more bubblies in the baffytub?" Aurora Rose asked after noticing that the amount of bubbles in their bath water had significantly diminished since her mother had finished washing her.

"No, sweetheart, I put enough bubble bath in the water. Bath time is almost finished. I just need to wash Andy." Stephanie pointed out before she began to scrub the colorful puppet cloth over Andrew's soft skin.

"He no like that." giggled Aurora.

She was stating the obvious when the one year old let out a whine and turned his head away from the direction of the wash cloth that was scrubbing his face clean.

"I know, but that's too bad. He needs to have his face washed, just like you. Just wait until I go to wash his hair. He's really going to get upset." Steph explained to her daughter as she used her free hand to make Andrew stand up so that she could wash his entire body with the other.

"He have more hair than his daddy!" Aurora exclaimed with a laughter before starting to play with her bath toys.

"You're right, he does." Stephanie chuckled. She brought her hand to the faucet knob and manipulated it to allow warm water to flow.

The running water quickly filled up a plastic cup which Stephanie then slowly poured over her one year old's head. Andrew immediately pitched a fit, so much so that Steph had to grab hold of the child for fear of him falling in the tub.

"Oh goodness, someone's not happy." Cathy commented the moment she entered the bathroom with two fresh folded towels in her arms.

"I laid out clothes for both of the children, and here are two towels that are still warm from the dryer." She added placing them on the counter top between the two bathroom sinks.

"Thank you, Cathy. They are almost ready to get out." replied Steph as she poured another cup of water on Andrew's hair to rinse out the soap suds.

"Eww, baby brother peepeed in the baff! Eww, wight out of his tinkle spout, Mommy!" Aurora cried out in disgust when she saw her younger sibling urinate into the water. The act caused her to stand up.

Catherine approached the bath tub and helped the three year old out before wrapping her with a towel. The nanny figured that removing the child from the dirty bath water would quickly calm her down and allow Steph to finish administering to her younger child.

"Oh, Steph, before I forget, your father called the house sounding quite agitated. He wouldn't leave a message but wants you to call back as soon as possible." Cathy reported to her boss.

Stephanie inadvertently rolled her eyes in response. She was in no way surprised to be getting an angry call from her dad when the writing team was without her direct supervision. She almost wanted to completely blow off the phone call. Her father caused her nothing but stress with his ranting and raving. Though thinking better of the situation, she knew that if she didn't get back to him then he was going to be all the more upset when he finally did get a hold of her. It was best to head off the potential problem instead of ignoring it.

"Can you get both of the kids dried off and dressed while I call my dad back?" Steph then inquired while at the same time she stood and then handed off Andrew to the nanny. His bath was finished so it was a perfect opportunity for her to slip away for a few minutes and appease her father with a phone call.

Ms. Scot gladly accepted the task allowing Stephanie to retreat to the floor level of her home in order to make the phone call. She was just about to enter the kitchen when the sound of the doorbell chiming caused her to halt. She quickly spun around, narrowing her eyes in the direction of the front of the house. She was not expecting any visitors today. The unanticipated arrival a guest took immediate precedence over calling Vince.

Anxious to see who was on her doorstep, Steph hastened her stride navigating through her hallways until she arrived at the vestibule. Before even bringing her hand to the door handle, she peered out of one of the smaller rectangular side windows to see who was actually on the other side of it.

"What the fuck?" She breathed in a faint whisper when she saw her ex-husband standing there.

What the hell was he doing there? Seeing him on her doorstep was like all of the anger and sadness she had experienced last night was rearing its ugly head to ruin the simplicity and peacefulness the new day had brought to her. Had she not made it clear to him that she no longer wished to know him? Did that last statement she gave him not cover the fact that she never wanted him darkening her doorstep again?

She nervously tucked her bottom lip into her mouth. Should she just ignore the fact that he was there and go on back to her mommy duties? How could she? Catherine would surely question as to why she wasn't acknowledging the fact that someone was outside ringing the doorbell. No, ignoring him wasn't the answer. She needed to deal with him head on.

Stephanie quickly unlocked the door and then opened it just enough for her head to fit in the space.

"What are you doing here?" Steph quickly snapped aloud in a voice that had all the bitchiness of her former television alter ego, Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley.

The abrasiveness of her tone immediately seemed to throw Paul off. He was silent for a few seconds after she had spoken. He shifted his weight between his feet, not taking a step closer nor farther from the doorway. In his hands, he firmly gripped their old family photo album. His hesitation caused her eyes to widened as an unspoken way of telling him to spit it out.

On the way over to the Angle home, he had pictured how this encounter between them would go in his mind so that he would know what to say. Unfortunately for him, in his mind, she had treated him like a human being, her child's father, and not like a lump of dog shit that she had just scrapped off one of her stiletto heels.

"I don't want you stepping foot in my house, Paul." Stephanie then added before he was even able to start answering her question.

"I just want to see Aurora..." He croaked, trailing off at the end of his sentence. Saying his daughter's name almost caused him to tear up; so did the thought of Steph denying him a chance to see his little girl before she tried to take away that right entirely.

"I don't know if that's a good idea. I wouldn't want her to get upset because of what happened yesterday. She's having such a good morning." protested Stephanie after letting a few seconds of awkward silence elapse.

Levesque breathed in deep before letting out a slow and controlled exhale. He couldn't believe how selfish she was being to not only him but to their child. The night before, she had thrown in his face that she wanted Kurt Angle to raise their daughter in his place. And now, she wouldn't even allow him a chance to explain to Aurora himself why he was no longer going to be a part of her life?

"Let's cut the bullshit, Steph. I'm not leaving here until I see my daughter. I don't care if I have to wait out here in the hot summer sun all day long. Call the cops, try and have me escorted off your property, nothing is going to keep me from seeing my baby girl. I still have the right to see her. You haven't taken that away from me yet." He told her in a quivering voice that was full of raw emotion.

Steph inhaled sharply and held it. In the mist of her anger, she couldn't help but acknowledge the fact that he did have a point. Stephanie had yet to go to court to contest the joint custody arrangement. Until then, she couldn't legally keep him from seeing Aurora Rose. And what about her? Wouldn't it be best if she got to say goodbye to him in terms of closure? It could be a monitored visit; that way if he said or did anything inappropriate, she could step in.

"Okay, fine, go around back to the deck and I'll send her out so you can have a few minutes to say your goodbyes, but don't think I won't be keeping an eye on you; just in case you have the urge to spew any more hurtful lies at her."

Before Levesque could even verbalize an acceptance of her offer, she retreated back into her house and slammed the door in his face. It was clear that he was going to have to walk the perimeter of the huge home instead of simply cutting through the inside of it. It made sense, she didn't want him stepping foot inside of it.

"Did someone ring your doorbell?" Cathy asked Mrs. Angle the minute she entered Aurora's bedroom.

"Yeah, Aurora's father is here to see her for a quick visit." Stephanie replied walking over to where the nanny was helping the three year old get dressed in a cotton t-shirt and shorts.

"Daddy here? Where?" Aurora questioned back quickly after her head popped through the shirt followed by her arms on either side.

"He's waiting for you on the back deck. If you don't want to see him, Mommy can make him leave." Steph assured her daughter while lovingly bringing her damp locks of light brown hair out of the back of the t-shirt.

"No, no go away. I pway wif him." Aurora quickly answered back with a smile as she clapped her hands together a few times showing her enthusiasm.

"Cathy, would you please keep Andrew occupied while I oversee my daughter's visit with her father?"

Little Andy had climbed up onto his sister's bed and was scrutinizing each and every one of the stuffed animals that were piled on top of it. Thank God the nanny was there to keep tabs on the one year old. There would have been no way for Stephanie to monitor Paul's visit with Aurora with Andrew Vincent to look after.

Catherine cocked her head slightly to the side. She looked a little confused by Stephanie mentioning that she needed to oversee her daughter's visit with her father. And why was her boss questioning if her child would want to see her daddy? It was all a little odd, but it was none of her business to inquire for clarification. She simply nodded with a smile and moved to tend to the younger child.

"I go see Daddy now!" Aurora exclaimed with excitement as she attempted to run passed Steph who grabbed hold of her hand to cut off her stride.

"Wait a minute, sweetheart, let's get some sandals on you."

To Stephanie's surprise, Aurora Rose seemed to be chomping at the bit to see Paul. It definitely spoke to how resilient children were. Despite all the nastiness her daddy had displayed in front of her, she was willing to look past it. The small child may have been able to do so, but Steph couldn't. At the tender age of three, she didn't understand what was best for her. She only knew that her daddy was a man that loomed high in her world and that she should love him.

It felt like forever that Paul was waiting patiently on the large wooden deck for his little girl to emerge from the sliding glass doors. It was no surprise that Stephanie was taking her sweet time bringing their child to him. He placed the photo album on the patio table and took a seat in one of the chairs.

And then, just when he thought he was going to have to wait well into the afternoon, the back door slid open. With a big smile on her face, the three year old hopped over the small step onto the back deck causing him to let out a chuckle. He beamed with pride seeing his baby girl now before him. Stephanie quickly pulled the screen door across the open doorway and then stood there with her arms folded while Paul got up from his chair.

"Daddy missed his baby girl so much." Levesque whispered after he quickly scooped her up into his arms and hugged her as tightly as he thought he could without hurting her.

"You come to pway wif me?" Aurora Rose asked, quickly letting go of the hug so that she could look into her daddy's eyes.

Paul wished with all his heart that that was really the reason he was there. Looking into the eyes of his child, he knew how difficult it was going to be to explain to her that they were no longer going to see each other anymore.

"Actually, honey, I came over to talk to you." He began before gently setting his little girl back onto her feet.

Levesque let out a long sigh and then slowly lowered himself into a kneeling position in front of his daughter so that he could be eye level with her. For a rambunctious three year old, she was standing there surprisingly still while waiting for her daddy to elaborate on what he was going to talk to her about. She was still smiling; completely oblivious to what she was going to be told. Paul had to mentally tell himself that he needed to press on and be honest with her. It was just so hard seeing his child standing there so happy to be with him when he knew it was all coming to an end.

"Sweetheart, Daddy is going to be going away..." He finally said aloud.

"I come too?" She quickly questioned back. Her sparkling eyes beginning to fill with excitement at the thought of daddy taking her on another trip. Maybe this time, Mommy could come too and she wouldn't be upset with him anymore, she thought to herself.

His daughter's inquiry wrenched his heart. Levesque slowly shook his head. His hazel eyes darted away. He had to turn his head away from her. It was far too painful to see his little girl's reaction to him telling her that he wouldn't be able to take her with him, no matter how much he wanted to.

"But why?" Aurora then asked innocently in her sweet little voice that would melt even the coldest of hearts.

"Daddy, why I no come?" She asked aloud again after not getting a response. She brought her little hands to either side of his face and forced him to turn his head back to look at her.

When father and daughter's eyes met, the tears began to fall from Paul's eyes. Through his blurry gaze, Levesque saw that the smile on her face had disappeared and had been replaced with a look of concern. She now knew that something was wrong. The fact that Aurora Rose was a big girl now and was quick to pick up on his emotions, made it all the harder for him.

"Because you need to stay with Mommy. We aren't going to see each other anymore." He croaked through his tears. Those were the hardest two sentences he had ever had to say aloud.

Aurora gave a hard frown. She tipped her head forward as her eyes began to sting with fresh tears. Her protruding pink bottom lip began to tremble before giving way to a sob. Why was her daddy not going to see her anymore? Was it because she had told Mommy about what he had said about her baby brother?

Even with her child's back facing her. Stephanie could hear her daughter's crying. Her first instinct was to run out onto the deck and take her into her arms and away from her father. However, it was Aurora's tearful words that froze her in place:

"You mad wif me? You no want be my daddy anymore?"

Her questions ripped into Paul's heart. His child actually thought that he was stopping their visits because he didn't want to be her father anymore. God, that was the farthest thing from the truth. His greatest wish would be to mend his shattered family and raise her with her mother. Stephanie had already crushed that dream, giving that privilege away to another man.

"Oh, sweetheart, I'm not mad at you. I love you with all of my heart. Getting to be your daddy has been the greatest accomplishment of my life. I wouldn't trade it for anything." He told her after pulling his child into his arms for an embrace.

As he held his daughter in his arms, Paul's eyes shifted to his ex-wife who was still standing at the screen door. To his surprise, she was crying as well. Her manicured fingertips she placed on either side of her nose, her palms covered her mouth. Her sparkling blue eyes leaked with tears that had to be only for their daughter. Couldn't she see what her decision to remove her from Aurora's life was doing to the child?

"Ven why you go away?" Aurora asked while still being hugged.

A part of Levesque wanted Stephanie to answer that question. After all, she was the one who was ripping him and Aurora apart. He kept his eyes focused on his former wife for a few more seconds before bringing them and his attention back to his crying child.

"I'm going away because I said and did things that good daddies shouldn't do. It's all my fault. You did nothing wrong, okay? Do you understand?"

Aurora pulled away from the hug to look at him. She shook her head while her small frame spastically jerked as she sucked air in and out through her runny nose.

She did not understand at all. Her daddy never was bad when she as with him. She always had fun playing with him. Why was her daddy being taken away? Andrew's daddy was on busy-iness but would come back to him. Why wasn't her daddy allowed to?

"You not bad, Daddy. You pway wif me and give me big huggies and kissies. You not go!" pleaded Aurora Rose, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I don't want to go, but sometimes, we have to do things that we don't want to do. And because daddy can't be with you anymore, I brought you something special for you to have always." Paul explained before moving to reach up and grab the photo album from the table.

"It the Daddy-Mommy-Aurora book." She stated sniffling back her congestion as her father brought it down to her.

The moment Aurora grasped hold of the book, Paul moved to sit back down in the patio chair, this time, putting his little girl in his lap. Now with both of them facing Steph, she immediately recognized the photo album in her daughter's hands. She had made it herself to chronicle her most joyous memories of her life with Paul. Stephanie had left it behind after their marriage had ended in an attempt to forget and move forward with her and Aurora's new life with Kurt.

"This photo album is all yours now. Whenever you feel sad and miss seeing Daddy, you can look at all these happy pictures and feel better." Paul advised before leaning in and kissing his daughter's tear stained cheek.

As much as Levesque loved being with his child, he knew it was time for him to say goodbye and leave. It was like a double edged sword: He wanted desperately to spend as much time as he could with her, but each passing moment was making it harder and harder to leave her with her mother.

"Daddy has to say bye-bye now. I love you, sweetheart." He muttered giving her a squeeze and a few more kisses.

"No!" cried Aurora as Paul set her down on her feet so that he could stand up to leave. She immediately let go of the photo album allowing it to fall flat on the wooden deck.

"I'm sorry, honey. I love you but I have to go." Levesque muttered while using his hand to wipe away his own tears.

The three year old was quick to spin around and grab onto her father's right leg with both her arms and legs like a crab. She figured that if she held onto her daddy, he couldn't leave her.

"No Daddy, no weave me, pwease! Daddy! Pwease!" She continued to beg through her tears holding on to his leg for dear life.

Paul bent down and brought his hands to his daughter. He knew that he needed to pull her off of him, but God help him, he couldn't do it. For months upon months, he had wanted his little girl to be attached to him like she had grown to be with Kurt Angle. And now that he finally had that, he was having to give it up. It broke his heart.. What he really wanted to do was pick her up and take her with him.

Levesque looked up and over at his ex-wife who was still playing spectator on the other side of the screen door. He stared at her blankly, his tears continuing to flow down his cheeks and into his beard. He felt like asking her if she was happy with what she saw. After all, this was what Stephanie wanted.

Steph took her ex-husband's glace as an indication that he needed her assistance with their daughter so that he could make his exit. She opened the sliding screen door and stepped out onto the deck.

"Come here, honey, he has to go. Let's go inside." Stephanie whispered in a calm but loving voice as she approached them.

"No, Mommy! No!" Aurora screamed and cried feeling her mother pulling off of her father's leg.

As soon as Steph had succeeded in pulling his daughter off of him, Paul quickly began to walk away toward the deck stairs. Him leaving, caused Aurora to pull away from her mother using all of her weight.

"I come too, Daddy! No go! DADDYYYY!" She cried out in almost a howl as she started to run after him. Stephanie moved fast and was able to catch her child and pick her up with a little bit of resistance.

"It's okay, shhh. He had to go, it was what was best. Mommy's here, sweetheart." Steph told her daughter as she tried rocking her in her arms like she did when she was a fussy little baby.

Paul had not looked back. It was the only way he was going to be able to go through with leaving her on that back deck. The sound of his child crying out for him hastened him as he tried to get as far from her as quickly as he could.

It was when Levesque disappeared around the side of the house that Aurora finally started to calm down a bit. She whimpered softly while her mommy dried her tears with her hand and then gave her a bunch of kisses as if to make up for her feeling of abandonment.

"How about we do something just for Mommy and Aurora? We can leave your brother at home with Cathy and we'll go get some ice cream. How about that, hmm? How does that sound, Princess?" suggested Steph while she gently pressed for forehead up against her daughter's. She then moved her face away so that her child could express what she wanted.

Aurora Rose shook her head adamantly before thrusting herself into her mother's shirt, snuggling her face up to her mommy's neck.

"Okay, maybe later when you're feeling better. Let's pick up your photo album and go inside. We can find a special place to put it in your room."

With her little girl still nuzzled in her arms, Stephanie walked over to where her old family photo album laid face up on the wooden deck. Gracefully, she bent down and lifted the album with one hand along its spine.

Her eyes focused on the cover picture: her and Paul with their little baby girl. A family picture for the cover of their family album. While the picture was only three years old, it felt like a lifetime ago; like another life she had led. She had moved on and had a new photo album to record new family memories with her new husband and her children. Still, Steph was glad that this album was in her daughter's possession. It documented for her the fact that her mommy and daddy were once very much in love with each other, and more importantly, that they both loved her.

"Steph?"

Catherine's voice caused Stephanie to snap back to reality and look in the direction in which she was hearing her name called. The nanny was standing at the screen door with Andy on her hip, and the cordless phone in her hand.

"Sorry to interrupt anything, but your dad is on the phone demanding to speak with you." explained Cathy in an apologetic tone of voice.

Stephanie rolled her eyes and gave a loud forced exhale. She made her way across the deck and pulled open the screen door.

"Here, just hold this for a minute." She ordered handing the nanny the photo album so that she had a free hand to take the phone.

"What do you want, Dad? I'm busy at home with my children!" She snapped out into the phone causing Andy to whine and reach for her.

"Damn it, Stephanie, I've been trying to get a hold of you all morning! You didn't answer your cell or call me back! That son of a bitch ex-husband of yours came to headquarters this morning and quit his job!"

Stephanie's eyes opened wide as he jaw dropped open with disbelief about what she had just heard. She was speechless. Levesque quit his job in World Wrestling Entertainment? No, she must have heard him wrong.

"He what?" She finally asked back regaining her voice.

"Are you deaf? I said he quit! He walked out on the company! We're suing his balls off, Steph! When I finish with that bastard, he's going to wish he never signed with this company back in 1994!...Hello? Stephanie, are you still there?"

Yes, she was still on the line, but was utterly astounded. In all of the years she had known Paul Levesque, very last thing on earth he would ever do would be to leave professional wrestling; Like body building, it was one of his greatest loves in his life. Perhaps it was the prospect of losing his visitation with Aurora. What else would have been the catalyst to do something so bizarre and impulsive?


	63. Chapter 63

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Sixty-Three

The sticky, hot weather in Hendersonville, Tennessee was made bearable thanks to the air conditioning in the brick state building that the afternoon meeting was to be held in. Kurt was seated at a red oak conference table. To Angle's right was his long time lawyer, Michael Santicola, who had flown down to Tennessee with him for this mediation. The conference room was quiet; too quiet since the new Mrs. Jeff Jarrett had not graced them with her presence yet. Kurt used his thumb to play nervously with his gold wedding band. He couldn't believe that he actually had to fly down for this. There was no way Karen had a case against him.

"This is unbelievable. We fly almost a thousand miles to be here today and we're here before she is. She lives not even ten minutes away." complained Angle, turning his head to look over at Mike who simply put his hand up to show that he understood his client's frustration.

Kurt's comment, that broke the silence of the conference room, caused the appointed mediator to look up from her documents from where she sat at the head of the table. The look she shot Angle was that of a strict librarian who was about to scold a petulant child who was disturbing the peace. Angle mouthed 'sorry', and in response she returned her gaze back down to her forms.

Kurt wanted to laugh aloud at the sight of this woman. Her silver hair was wrapped in a tight bun on top of her head while she wore a crimson red outdated business suit complete with linebacker like shoulder pads. To think that she was the one person who would decide if Karen had enough evidence to take her sole custody case to court.

For fear of getting another evil stare, this time, Angle leaned over to his right to whisper to his lawyer after glancing at his wrist watch:

"If she doesn't show up, won't she just throw this bullshit case out?"

Before Mike could whisper a reply back, one of the large wooden conference doors opened and both Jeff and Karen Jarrett came strutting in like they owned the place. Jeff was wearing a pink Hawaiian style collared shirt and khaki shorts. Kurt's ex looked like she was a diva who had just stepped off a fashion runway. She was definitely dressing the part: head to toe designer clothing complete with sunglasses that she hadn't even taken off. Trailing behind them was Karen's own attorney who seemed to have followed suit with his clients, and showed up late.

"Sorry we're a little late. We were dropping off our kids at swimming and tennis." Karen explained as she finally lifted her sunglasses from her eyes and perched them on top of her head of hair, that was swept up in an up-do.

"Why the hell is he here?" piped Angle pointing his finger in the direction of the self proclaimed King of the Mountain, Jeff Jarrett.

This meeting was about Kyra and Kody: Karen and his two children. Jeff Jarrett had no business being there at all. Knowing Karen, she was probably going to run her mouth so much that she didn't need her new red neck hubby's support or even a lawyer to speak on her behalf.

"He has a right to be here." Karen told him back in a dismissive tone of voice while Jarrett pulled her chair out for her to sit like a true southern gentleman.

"What are you talking about? He has no rights because they're not his kids!" Angle retorted with anger.

"Mr. Angle, please remember that this is a formally sanctioned meeting to decide what is the best interest of your children. A bit of social decorum would be appropriate." The mediator advised fixing her wire framed glasses on the bridge of her pointy nose.

After Kurt had been warned, Mrs. Jarrett decided it was time for her to give her passive-aggressive answer back that she knew was only going to get under his skin even more:

"Oh, they will be his children when I am granted sole custody of them." She promised with the Cheshire cat smile, taking a seat directly across from her former husband.

Kurt slowly shook his head while his blue eyes stared back at Karen with all the hatred he was feeling for her at the moment. God, he would have given anything for his two older children to have been given to him by Stephanie and not that vindictive, selfish bitch that was sitting before him.

"Just stay calm, okay? Chill out, we don't want to make a scene." Santicola whispered to Angle placing a hand on his muscular arm to try and diffuse the anger he could see building in his client's face.

"Why are you even here, Kurt? Why do you care if I want full custody? You're living the good life up in Greenwich with Stephanie, who has already given you a shiny new life complete with a new Angle son." commented Karen as she spoke with put-on enthusiasm to further drive home her point.

Kurt furrowed his eyebrows at the same time his mouth gapped open with disbelief. Was this woman for real? How could she think that about him when those children were his just as much as they were hers.

"What does my life with Stephanie have to do with how good of a father I am or how much I care about Kyra and Kody? Yes, I've moved on and got remarried, so did you! Yes, Steph and I have a child together and another one on the way, but no new children could ever replace Kody and Kyra!"

"Mr. Angle, your volume..." The mediator pointed out this time waving a pen back and forth in her hand.

It was at that point that Karen's new husband, Jeff, decided to speak out to the father of the children who had been living with him in his Tennessee home for the past few months.

"You know what, Kurt? You really are nothing but words. I've been involved with Karen for the past year and I can count on one hand the number of times you saw those two kids. They need a father who's going to be there for them twenty-four-seven, not just a good time daddy who spends time with them when he feels like it."

"I'm going to tell you this only once, Jarrett. Shut your God damn mouth when it comes to my kids, or I'll come right across this table and shut it for you!" threatened Angle as he forcefully slammed his fists down with a loud thud.

The outburst caused both Karen and the mediator to jump in place while Jeff and Kurt locked eyes like they might actually fight right there in the conference room.

"Do you see this behavior? How can I be forced to subject my innocent children to this? We need to go to court!" Karen screamed out before the mediator could speak. She spoke in a whinny voice that was obviously over dramatized.

Kurt felt like he was in a nightmare. He was getting so angry by the Jarretts passing judgment on him as a father; especially, Jeff. How dare that guy sit there and speak to how many times Angle was able to see his two kids. Did he know the truth? The fact that Karen would make up excuses as to why plans had to change and he couldn't see them every time he planned a visit to Pittsburgh while they were still living there? Or how about when Karen uprooted the children to move down to Tennessee without even telling him first? How the hell could he be a good father when he wasn't included in anything that had to do with his two oldest children?

"Do you want to go to court? Because you're making their case every time you have an outburst." Mike whispered warning his client of the fact that he was in fact, playing into Karen and Jeff's hand.

"Can we please regroup and focus on the reason we are meeting today? My client and I flew down here today to set the record straight and prove that he, in no way, poses as a possible detriment to his children. Mrs. Jarrett has no evidence of any harm or neglect to have befallen either child while in his care. There is absolutely no solid ground in regard to her petition for the removal of my client's legal parental right to have visitation with his children." Michael Santicola protested eloquently on behalf of Kurt.

"Oh, please, I was married to him for ten years. He was an addict; out of his mind on prescription pain killers, and was barely ever home. Hell, for the first four years of Kyra's life, she didn't even call him 'Daddy' she called him 'Kurt'." Karen interjected in a bitchy voice that was still an appropriate volume.

"Oh my God, really, Karen? You and I both know that my pain killer addiction was a result of me getting so physically worn down because I was busting my ass for the WWE to give my kids the life that I only dreamed of. I'm completely rid of all that now. I submit to random drug screening at work." Angle retorted in a heated voice that he was struggling to keep a civil volume.

"At your work, which is the company that your new wife's family owns." She replied with an eye roll to show that she wasn't convinced that he was on the straight and narrow.

"That's right, and I haven't taken a single pill since I quit cold turkey two years ago when we were still together. You're full of shit, and don't even talk about when Kyra was little and I was never home. It's not like that now. Each and every one of my children know who I am and call me 'Daddy'. " continued Kurt making his own defense to everything that Karen was throwing at him.

"Okay, Kurt, you want to talk about your more recent sins? What can you tell me about this copy of a police report from a certain DUI arrest from a few weeks back? Or were you so drunk when it happened that you don't remember it at all? Well in case you don't, I'll tell you what went down. My two angels were left with your wife while you were locked up over night at the county jail. I had to come all the way to Connecticut to collect my kids early because you were too busy getting drunk." Karen retorted pulling the paper copy of the arrest report from her lawyers stack of papers so she could pass it down to the mediator.

"You make it sound like I was out at a bar getting drunk during the day. My wife and I had a disagreement. I was in a lot of pain as well because of a rib injury from the night during a RAW match. I went to a local diner and ordered a few cups of coffee that had some alcohol in them. I needed something to take the edge off since I can't take any kind of pain medication. On the way home, I ended up getting into a fender bender and a cop pulled up on me. That's how it happened. I was alone in the SUV. None of my children were even with me. They were in no danger because they at my home with my wife, Stephanie." Angle pled, turning his attention to the mediator who was looking over the police report.

"Oh and was Stephanie watching the kids when Kody got that huge bump on his head? The answer is no. _You_ were the one who was supposedly watching him when he fell and got a concussion. When I brought him home, his pediatrician couldn't believe the size of the bruise on his head. I had him document his comments." Mrs. Jarrett added pulling yet another paper from the stack in front of her lawyer so that it could be given to the mediator.

"Come on, do you believe this? He's an active little boy. He and his sister will playing in the wrestling ring when he accidently fell out of it onto the ground. I was only a few feet away when it happened. I had him looked at by an EMT that we have right there at the arena. Kody was fine. He even wanted to go back into the ring and play once the show was over." explained Kurt as he could feel himself starting to get emotional because Karen was making it seem that he had carelessly endangered his eldest son.

The mediator didn't seem to react at all to Kurt's own oral defense of each piece of evidence that Karen had slid in her direction. She simply sat there, scanning over each document. She wasn't really buying Karen's bullshit was she?

"As passionate and sincere as you are portraying yourself to be, Mr. Angle. I believe that the testimony along with the documented evidence that Mrs. Jarrett has presented me with today is enough for me to accept her request to present her case before a judge. The court date will be given to both parties in well enough advance to accommodate for any travel arrangements that need to be made. This meeting is adjourned." She finally said aloud before she began to collect her forms and papers together.

"You've got to be kidding me! She has no evidence that I'm not a good father to those kids! I love each and every one of my children with all my heart and soul! This is bullshit! I shouldn't have to be on trial for my right to be a father! I provided and loved Kyra and Kody since day one and I continue to do so!" Angle hollered out as his voice cracked with an over flow of emotion. His tears began to flow freely making him bring his hand to his face to wipe them away.

Karen actually scoffed at the display of emotions that her ex-husband was performing. He was quite the actor when he found himself in a domestic or legal mess. The tears were never hard for him to squeeze out when he needed to.

"Save your theatrically long winded speech for the court room, Kurt." Mrs. Jarrett commented with a smirk, before ushering her husband and lawyer out of the conference room in order to leave Angle to pity himself. It was what he did best.

* * *

Paul felt like this red Humvee was in auto pilot while he sat at its helm. He felt so disconnected that he had no recollection of when he had actually left the Angle home, nor when he had merged onto the highway heading north. He wasn't going back to his place. There was nothing awaiting him there but an empty house that was as dreary as he now felt. Levesque was driving home; his real home. Back to where his life had begun as Paul Michael Levesque; Before he was given his character names Hunter Hearst Helmsley and Triple H that millions of people the world over knew him by. Paul was no longer Triple H. He had relinquished the ownership of that name when he quit World Wrestling Entertainment. He didn't fucking care. Vince could have Triple H's WWE legacy and do whatever he wanted with it. It was the knowledge that he had just told his child that he was no longer going to see her, that was eating away at him.

"If I'm not a husband or a father...Who am I?" He muttered aloud to himself while he tried his best to fight back his tears.

Levesque was sure that little Aurora Rose was doing enough crying for both of them. He couldn't even fathom how hard this was for her. He was a big strong man and had been reduced to a blubbering mess at the prospect of being without his daughter. His child was only three years old. How would she possibly be able to make sense of him walking out on her? Paul hoped and prayed that she wasn't going to blame herself. He had told her that it was daddy's fault that he said and did things that were wrong. Levesque was more than willing to take full responsibility for all of it; that was why he had made it a point to not include Stephanie at all when giving their child the reason why he would no longer have contact with her. He loved his child far too much to poison her mind against her mommy.

Paul stuffed away his sadness and brought his focus to that of being stoic and emotionless as the Hummer slowly crept up his parents driveway. He was determined to seek the sanctuary of his parents' loving home without blind siding them with his devastating news. Sure, he wasn't naive to think that it all wouldn't come out eventually, but for his arrival, he was going to play it cool.

Both Patricia and Paul Sr. had seen his red Hummer pull into their driveway as they were just finishing up a late lunch. They had just spent time with their son and granddaughter the day before. It was a bit strange for him to be coming back home to visit so soon.

"Well this is quite a pleasant surprise! We weren't expecting you to be back so soon and without calling, but I'm so glad you're here!" Patricia gushed the moment she opened her front door and saw her son on the other side of it.

Paul Jr. was able to muster a weak smile before stepping into the house and embracing his mother in a hug. It was so comforting for him to be somewhere where he was welcomed and wanted. He really needed family right now.

"Good to see you again so soon, son. We've already eaten but I'm sure your mother could fix you something." Paul Sr. commented before getting his turn to hug his boy.

"It's fine, Dad. I'm not hungry."

Mrs. Levesque hadn't taken her eyes off of her son. She was scrutinizing him. Something was very wrong. She knew him and could tell when he was upset. Even his color didn't look good. What was going on?

"Are you all right, sweetheart? You don't look well. Did something happen?" Patricia inquired taking her son by the hand and pulling him back over to her so that she could look directly into his hazel eyes.

"Eh, I had a really tough couple of days, Mom. Can I just go upstairs to my old room and lay down?" Paul pleaded, not wanting to divulge the circumstances surrounding his return home.

His mother desperately wanted to continue to press for him to reveal what it was that was weighing so heavily on him. Looking into his eyes, she could see so much sadness in them. She would do anything to help him overcome it. But he didn't want to let her in. That was his choice, after all, he was a grown man with a life of his own. All she could do was there be to support him when he needed her and his father.

"Of course, son. Go right ahead and take a rest. Your father and I are here if you need anything." replied Patricia as she lovingly squeezed her son's large hand to show her sincerity.

"Thanks, Mom." He muttered back before leaning down to give her a kiss on the forehead before he removed his hand from her grasp, and left to ascend the staircase.

"What do you think that was about? He didn't even come with a duffel bag or anything. Do you think he's staying with us and taking some time off from wrestling? That's not like him." Mr. Levesque pointed out to his wife after their son was upstairs and out of earshot.

"I'm worried about him. He's not himself."

Upon reaching his childhood bedroom, Paul allowed himself to simply collapse down onto the double bed. His head was pounding. He closed his eyes tight, wishing that he could erase all of the mistakes he had made in the past with regards to Stephanie and Aurora. The sad fact was that he couldn't. His fate had already been sealed today. Levesque turned to the only escape he knew which was sleep. Because of how sad and lethargic he felt, he was out in no time. It was a deep sleep that could only be had by someone who was depressed.

* * *

It was in the late afternoon that Stephanie and Aurora went out for a mother-daughter date to get some ice cream at a local Greenwich shop. It had been a few hours since her daughter had had her melt down because of her daddy saying goodbye to her. After a decent nap, the three year old seemed to be much calmer. It was a perfect opportunity for the two of them to get out of the house and just spend time together.

"Is your ice cream good, sweetie?" She asked her daughter with a smile.

Aurora Rose was sitting next to her mommy in the booth and was quietly spooning tiny clumps of ice cream into her mouth from the glass bowl. Her daughter nodded slightly before she placed her spoon down into the melting chocolate scoops letting its handle clank against the glass bowl's rim.

"Did you get a brain freeze?" Steph then inquired with a giggle.

The three year old shook her head and then laid it down on the restaurant table with her left cheek pressed up against the surface. Her little eyes clacked open and closed a few times as she looked over at her mommy who was still observing her, while eating her own dish of ice cream.

"Everyone loves you, sweetheart. I love you. Granny loves you. Pop loves you. Kurt loves you." commented Stephanie before she tucked her bottom lip into her mouth and brought her hand to her daughter's back to rub it.

"Daddy wuvs me." The child muttered before popping her pink bottom lip out.

Stephanie breathed in deep. It was obvious that her ex-husband was still on her little girl's mind. Steph knew it would be foolish for her to think that a mere few hours and a few scoops of ice cream could make her forget that she was no longer going to see Paul. It was going to take time for that wound to heal. Steph could only hope that her and Kurt could give her little girl all the love and warm for her to realize that they were a family even with Levesque gone. Hell, she thought of Kurt as her father months before, so it wasn't a stretch to think that Angle could once function as the father figure in her life.

Before Stephanie could come up with an appropriate reply to her daughter, her cell phone rang causing her to begin to rummage through her Coach handbag for it. Finding the phone at the bottom of her bag, she brought it out and saw the two white letter words "Kurt's Cell".

"Hi honey, how did the meeting go?"

"Hi babe, not good..."

"Why, what happened?" Steph quickly asked back sounding a bit surprised to hear that it wasn't a walk in the park like she figured it would be for him.

"Ah, let's save that conversation for when I get home. I'm just about to make my connecting flight now. I'll be home later tonight. How were you and the kids today?"

"Umm, well, we'll have to talk about that later too." She replied in an exhale while using her free hand to brush her daughter's soft light brown hair away from her angel face.

"Oh boy, well, I miss you and the kids. I'll see you later tonight, okay? I love you."

"Okay, I love you too. Bye."

"Mommy, we go home?" Aurora whined as soon as her mother ended her phone call.

"Sure, we can go home. Do you want to have the waitress put your ice cream in a container so you can take it with you?"

Aurora shook her head and then pushed the ice cream bowl away from her. She just wanted to go home; to see her favorite stuffed animals: Flipsy, Kitty Cat, and Puppy Dog. They would be right where she had left them in her bedroom. Her toys didn't leave her, they were hers forever.

Stephanie did as her daughter asked and brought her home. The moment she stepped into the laundry room from the garage, the child ran straight through the kitchen toward the staircase, not even bothering to acknowledge Cathy and her little brother who were finishing up a snack of apples.

"Where is she off to in such a hurry?" Catherine asked her boss when she saw Steph slowly enter the kitchen.

"Probably to her room to play. Thanks for watching my little man so I could spend some time with my first born." Stephanie commented with a smile to show her gratitude. She knew that Ms. Scot was being paid to take care of her children, but she still appreciated her.

"He's a joy to take care of. I hope you and Aurora had a nice time together. It's good for her to get some one on one time with you, especially with baby number three coming next year." Cathy chuckled gesturing toward Mrs. Angle's abdomen.

"Oh I know, I can't believe I'm going to be a mother of three. I'm so excited." Stephanie gushed bringing her hands to her flat stomach.

"Did you need me to stay through dinner?"

"No, that won't be necessary. I'm going to whip up the kids a quick dinner and then put them to bed. Kurt's coming home tonight and I'm sure we're going to have a lot to talk about. I'll see you tomorrow at the usual time though." replied Steph while she slid the tray off of her son's high chair and then unbuckled him.

"Okay, I'm going to take off then. Enjoy your evening with your family." Ms. Scot told her boss with a smile as she watched how happy Andrew became when his mother lifted him out of his high chair and into her arms.

After Cathy's departure, Stephanie took a substantial amount of time in her home office to attempt to read through her work emails and send a few replies out. It wasn't long into getting into work mode, that she began to wish that she hadn't let the nanny go so soon. She was constantly having to look away from her laptop because her busy one year old had toddled over to something in her home office that would be in small broken pieces in less than a minute.

"Oh no, no, sweetheart, don't touch!" She would quickly shout out before running over to her son who would hold up the expensive trinket for her to see with a smile on his face, like he had found for her something she had misplaced.

Her tasks were finally accomplished with her one year old on her lap with him occupied with her favorite office supply. Thank God for sticky notes, because ripping away each colored square paper from its stack provided Andrew with sufficient entertainment so that his mother could do her job at home.

By the time dinnertime rolled around, she was satisfied with her progress of pushing through her paper work that had been building up with her absence. She retreated back to the kitchen and made her and her children dinner.

"Are you not hungry, Aurora? Is your belly still full from the ice cream?" Steph asked when she noticed that her daughter wasn't eating very much of her meal at all.

"No, I no hungwy, Fwipsy gonna eat it up." explained the three year old as she pushed the face of her stuffed otter into her plate so he could have a taste of Mommy's cooking.

"Wow, I didn't know river otters liked chicken breast, corn, and carrots." chuckled Stephanie while she broke apart the pieces of chicken on her son's high chair tray so they would be small enough for him to pick up and eat without her having to worry about him choking.

"He like it. He a spes-seal otter that Daddy getted me." Aurora proclaimed and then followed her words up with her best attempt at how a river otter would sound while it ate table food.

The sound of his big sister playing caused Andy to turn and watch her as he tried to mimic her silly sounds. The smiling toddler grabbed hold of one of his pieces of chicken and then reached out from his high chair with it toward the direction of his sister and her stuffed animal. Perhaps he wanted to get in on the animal feeding as well.

"No, Fwipsy not want your food, baby broffer." Aurora Rose scowled while at the same time making the stuffed animal hide under the dinner table.

Her remark made Andrew turn back around to face his mother. He then offered her the same fist full of chicken pieces.

"No thank you, sweetie, that's yours. Mommy has her own plate of food." Steph told her son before forking a bite of food into her mouth.

When dinner was finished, it was Andrew who was first to be changed into his pajamas and laid down in his crib. Aurora, being a big girl, got to have special story time with Mommy before she had to go to sleep.

"Do you know what book you want me to read to you?" Stephanie asked while tucking Aurora into her colorful bed sheet.

"Yeah, I want my Daddy-Mommy-Aurora book." replied the little girl as she then pulled the photo album out from under her pillow.

Stephanie let out a little sigh as she adjusted her seating on the edge of her daughter's bed. She wasn't going to get off that easy with "Green Eggs and Ham" or "Goodnight Moon", which had been the usual choices by her three year old. Now, thanks to Paul, her daughter wanted her to pour over pictures from their failed marriage. Of course she would do it since it was for her child, but it didn't mean that she was in the spirit of doing so. Maybe she could sway her daughter to another actual book.

"That's a photo album, silly. It's not a story book."

"It a story, Mommy. Daddy told me. I tell you." Aurora quickly answered back pointing to the cover.

Stephanie gave her daughter a weak smile as she then waited for the child to begin to re-count what her father had told her about the photo album.

"Daddy-Mommy-Aurora book by me." She announced before opening the cover to the first page of pictures.

"Oncey time Mommy wuved Daddy and mar-weed him." Aurora Rose explained pointing to Paul and Stephanie's 2003 wedding picture.

"Ven baby me hided in Mommy's big belly. See, dar I am." She said smiling up at her mother while pointing at the pregnant picture of Stephanie from 2006.

"Yeah, you're right, you are in my big belly." Stephanie acknowledged her child before giving her a kiss on the side of her face.

"And wook, Mommy! I den born and Daddy holded me!" The child exclaimed pointing to her first photo with her daddy.

"Aww, Aurora, you were so precious, sweetheart...My tiny baby girl." Stephanie gushed pointing to another picture from the delivery room that Paul had taken of her holding her newborn daughter while lying in the hospital bed.

Stephanie gently ran her hands through Aurora's beautiful, soft brown locks of hair while the child creatively narrated the rest of the photos. Steph couldn't help but smile at how creative her child was being with each new picture. She could see Aurora's eyes light up with so much excitement as she told her little story with the pictures. Of course, the story had to come to an end when the child reached the plastic pages that were blank with no more Levesque family memories to fill them up.

Aurora became silent when her eyes fell on the empty pages. It was like her little fairytale had been abruptly cut short. She really wanted to say that Mommy, Daddy, and Aurora lived happily ever after, but that wasn't really how the story went.

"Ven the book over cus Daddy weft Mommy and Aurora." She admitted in a disappointed voice that showed her sadness.

"That wasn't the end of the story, after Mommy and Daddy went their separate ways, Mommy fell in love with man named Kurt who made her smile and loved her and her little girl very much. He married Mommy and moved her and Aurora into a big new beautiful house in Greenwich. Then, because they loved each other so much, they had a little baby boy named Andrew. And everyone lived happily ever after." Stephanie said with a smile as she finished off the story for her child.

But what about Daddy? Did he live happily ever after? Aurora Rose narrowed her eyes and used her hands to flip through several of the blank plastic pages. She looked back at her mother before questioning her storytelling.

"Dat no in the book."

"Well, it's not in that photo album, but it's in the new one Mommy has. I'll show it to you another day. But now it's time for bed." Steph told her child bringing her face close to gave her child a kiss. She then moved back to where she was at bedside.

The little girl's mind was still focused on that book, the Daddy-Mommy-Aurora book. Her fingers filed back through the last few pages of pictures. She focused her eyes on the last family picture that had been taken of her with her parents when she was a year old.

Why did Mommy have to have a new book? Why couldn't she know what happened to Daddy in the story? Maybe he was naughty, but he was sorry; didn't that mean something?

"Mommy?" Aurora asked grabbing her mother's shirt before Stephanie was able to stand up to do her finishing touches of tucking the little girl in.

"Yes, honey?"

"Why Daddy have to go away? Can he go in time-out ven say he sor-wey? Like when I bad and pushed broffer ven had to sit on the steps. Can't Daddy come back, Mommy? He no mean to do bad fings." Aurora Rose pled with her innocent eyes wide.

Stephanie felt a wave of sadness overtake her. It ripped at her heart to hear her child begging for her father to be forgiven. It killed her because she knew that her three year old didn't understand the specifics of the situation and what it was that her daddy had done. It wasn't the child's job to justify her father's wrong doing.

"Oh sweetheart, it's very different when grown-ups do bad things. Grown-ups know right from wrong and when they choose to do something wrong, then they're stuck. There is no quick fix like time-out to erase what they did, especially when it hurt little children like you and your brother. I'm sure your daddy loves you and that he's sorry for what he did. Now he needs time away for a while." explained Steph in a voice that was strained while she tried to contain her emotions.

Aurora's bottom lip trembled slightly before it popped outward. She looked down at the other side of the page where there was a picture of her daddy smiling at the camera with only him in the picture. She wished he hadn't done any bad things at all.

"Aurora, I love you with all of my heart; you and Andrew. The only thing in the world that I care about is loving you and keeping the two of you safe and happy, okay? Now, put your photo album away because it's night-night time."

"Night-night, Daddy." Aurora whispered and then leaned down and gave the picture a quick kiss.

Stephanie had to take a deep breath and hold it to keep her composure. She felt so torn apart between what she thought in her heart was best for her children, and how her little girl was feeling at that very moment.

She gently lifted the album from Aurora's bed as soon as she closed it. She placed it on the small bookshelf next to the child's nightstand before going back to the bed to say a final goodnight to her daughter.

"Good night, sweetheart. I love you a million bunches and always will." She professed as she gave her child a nice long hug and then another kiss.

"Night-night, Mommy." Aurora replied before turning onto her side to get comfortable.

Knowing the normal bedtime routine, Stephanie flicked on her little nightlight before turning the light off in the room. The bedroom door, she left half open. Once out into her upstairs hallway and away from her little girl, the tears began to flow from Steph's eyes like a tilde wave that had just spilled over a dam. She cried silently while moving across the house toward her master bedroom. With a good amount of force, she pushed open the double doors to move into the room. Stephanie allowed herself to fall onto the bed. She let out a sob that was muffled by her bedspread.

"Stephanie?"

Angle stood frozen in place at the entrance to the master bedroom. His eyes were wide with concern as they stared at his wife crying on their king size bed. Had something happened while he was away? Was she hurt? Was it one of the kids?

The sound of his voice calling her name caused Steph to sit up and look in his direction. Her sparkling blue eyes pierced his when their eyes met. Upon returning home, Angle thought that it would be his wife who would be comforting him because of Karen taking him to court; now it looked like that it was Stephanie who needed to be consoled.


	64. Chapter 64

**Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.**

Chapter Sixty-Four

"Steph, baby, what is it?"

After voicing his concern, Angle quickly moved across the spacious master bedroom to where his wife was sitting distraught on their bedspread.

Her husband showing concern for her caused Stephanie to cry even harder. Setting aside her feelings about what she and her little girl were going through with the Paul situation, Steph was also feeling a measure of guilt and sadness for keeping all of this from her husband since it all went down yesterday.

"Come on, honey, whatever it is, you can tell me." Kurt encouraged gently wiping away a falling tear from her face.

He felt on edge. Something really had to be wrong for her to be so beside herself in tears. So many terrifying scenarios plagued his mind. The most plausible yet devastating was the thought that she could have miscarried. God, he just wish she would say what it was. No matter how terrible, at least he would know. The unknowing was much more frightening.

Stephanie closed her eyes tight, cutting forming tear drops that quickly ran down her face. She pursed her soft pink lips together; Steph wanted to tell him everything but she was not sure where to even start.

"You were right about Paul..." She finally muttered while doing her best to sniff back her congestion.

"What? What are you talking about? Did something happen while I was in Tennessee?" He quickly asked back with a hint of anger in his voice. The thought of Levesque doing anything to hurt his wife or one of the children was enough to set him off right then and there.

"Do you remember when Aurora was acting out a couple of days ago and I went up to talk with her? Well, she told me that her father had told her that I didn't love her anymore and that I was replacing her with Andrew and the new baby. I was utterly shocked that he could do something like that..."

"I'm not. How many times did I try and tell you that Paul only thinks about himself? The only thing he cares about is ruining the happy family we made together." Angle replied back quickly. He was not phased at all by what his wife was telling him about her ex.

"Well I confronted him. I told him that what he did was inexcusable and I didn't want him in Aurora's life anymore. Then he came by today and said goodbye to Aurora, getting her all worked up and upset. After he left, I got a call from Dad saying that Paul quit the company." Steph then divulged sniffling back her tears.

"Well that's good, he's out of our lives completely! He did what you wanted, right?" Angle quickly pointed out with a small chuckle before he furrowed his eyebrows because of his confusion of why his wife was so upset.

Kurt felt like Christmas had come early. Stephanie had finally seen the light and had banished Levesque from her good graces. In turn, Levesque had decided to resign from WWE; a course of action that definitely meant that the better man had won, and he had given up. Angle knew that he was the better man. Stephy belonged with him, and now, there would be no one to challenge that fact.

"I don't know what I want anymore. I said what I said to him because I was worried about my children. But when I see the look of sadness on my baby girl's face, I can't help but second guess what I said to him." She admitted bringing her hands to her face as she began to lose her composure again.

"Steph, no, don't second guess yourself. You're a good mother to Andrew and Aurora. When your daughter told you that her father was the son of a bitch that I told you he was, you did the right thing. He only cares about himself, not what's best for Aurora." Angle pointed out rubbing his wife's back as she sat next to him on their bed.

"Why did he quit the company? If he was so worried about his career, he would never have just walked into Dad's office and quit. And you should have seen Aurora, she was so upset. She didn't understand why he was leaving her. I'm so scared that she's going to end up blaming me..." Steph sobbed revealing her biggest fear and the reason she was so distraught.

"Oh, honey, I'd never let that happen. Aurora will be okay. You'll just have to explain to her that you are upset with her father right now, but she will be able to see him again soon. Just because we don't want him in our lives, doesn't mean that he still can't spend time with his child." Kurt explained after he took her into an embrace.

"No, I told him that I wanted to contest legal custody of her. He made me so mad that I just wish that we could go back to how it was before Aurora knew him as her father. You said before that you loved her like your own flesh and blood. Would you be willing to actually adopt her?" Steph asked through sniffles, hugging her husband back tightly.

Angle's mouth gaped open. He was a bit shocked with his wife's request. She was right, he had said in the past that he loved Aurora like she was his own child and he could see adopting her; but that was months ago. Kurt had been through so much since then when it came to his ex-wife and his own two older children. He couldn't help but put himself in Paul's situation, now that he knew that Jeff Jarrett was gunning for his role as father to Kyra and Kody. Who would Kurt be to replace the little girl's real and true daddy? Wouldn't that make him a hypocrite? Had Stephanie taken a page from Karen Jarrett's book? Wasn't one sole custody battle enough?

"You're right, I do love Aurora, but I just wouldn't feel right trying to take the place of her father now. I mean, it was different before, she used to think I was her daddy. Now, she knows who her father is, and I don't think it would be right for me to challenge that. Not because of Levesque, you know how much I hate him, but because I care about your little girl, and I want what is best for her." Kurt whispered lovingly into his wife's ear while resting his jaw on her shoulder.

"I do too, and that's why I am torn up inside. You should have heard my baby saying all the hateful things Paul said to her and everything he's done because he hates our marriage. I don't want the ugliness around any of my children. I think I need to take him to court." Stephanie admitted after leaving her husband's embrace. Her sparkling blue eyes pierced through his showing to him her sincerity.

"I don't, he's already done what you asked of him. He's left the company, and it seems he's going to leave you and Aurora alone. I don't think you should go after him in court. I'm about to go there myself with Karen, and I know it's going to hurt my kids; tear them up inside. Do you want that for Aurora? Hasn't she been through enough?"

Angle's words caused Steph to slowly begin to nod her head in agreement. Her little girl had been through enough drama in the three short years of her life, that she didn't need any more. Perhaps her threat about taking Paul to court was done so more out of knee jerk decision on her part that was out of anger and spite. Did Levesque's behavior really warrant him losing the privilege of being Aurora's father forever? And wouldn't that end up being a punishment for Aurora too, since she now knew him as her father?

"I hate that it has come to this. I just want a happy, healthy life with you and my three babies. I never thought that I was asking for much..." cried Stephanie, she leaned into her husband for comfort which he gladly gave her in the form of kiss on the forehead.

"It's not, honey. We deserve to be a happy family. You can't let this stress you out. Think about our little unborn baby growing inside of you." He told her as he began to gently caress her abdomen with his hand before continuing:

"Little Aurora will pull through this with a little bit of time. And I'm sure Paul will contact you after some time passes. If he really loves Aurora, he's going to want to work things out with us so he can see her again. He doesn't want to go to court either. So don't you worry, Steph, okay, everything is going to be okay. I'm here for you always. I love you, baby."

Kurt's loving words made Steph crack a smile while her tears began to subside. He had put, what she had considered as a dreadful situation, into a more positive perspective. Not only did he remind her how loved she was in her marriage, but Angle also made it clearly apparent how lucky she was. She had two healthy children and now another on the way that she had not lost despite a turbulent first trimester.

"I love you too." She whispered back bringing both of her manicured hands to his clean shaven face. She then leaned in and pressed her lips firmly against his.

Kurt let out a long sigh. He quickly took control of their kiss; parting his lips, he gently inserted his tongue into her mouth with no resistance from his wife. Their lips locked, and Stephanie matched his rhythm caressing his tongue with hers. The mere act of kissing her always turned Angle on; his muscular arms wrapped around Steph's slender frame and he pulled her to him causing her to straddle his torso.

"What do you think you're doing?" asked Steph with a sly smile the minute she broke the kiss. His hands were on her backside and he was making her grind into him.

"What am I doing?" He chuckled back before flashing a naughty smirk.

Angle didn't have to tell her what he wanted. She could feel from his body's current state of arousal as she rubbed up against him. And she wanted it too; even though it would be going against what the doctor in the hospital had advised. Hell, they hadn't been able to have make up sex since getting back together after a week or two apart.

"I don't want you to do anything. I'm in charge." Stephanie told him raising an eyebrow. Her hands reached behind her and removed his from her rear.

Kurt made his eyebrows go up once before pulling his mouth taunt into a goofy smile. He allowed his wife to move his hands to his sides. Then he breathed in deep, looking down at his dress shirt where Steph's hands then settled at its collar.

She grabbed hold of either side of the collar and used it to pull him toward her for an opened mouth kiss that she pulled away from before he could attempt to take control of it. He chuckled and then tried to kiss her again, but she moved away, teasing him slightly.

Stephanie smiled devilishly as her fingers began to fiddle with the top button of his dress shirt. Angle smiled back, and watched as she took her time slowly unbuttoning each and every button down his shirt. He was resisting the urge to take over and simply rip his shirt off along with hers. He wanted to obey her. Steph was in charge of their foreplay and she was surely going to make it a very pleasant experience.

As soon as the last button was undone, she grabbed two handfuls of the shirt, and pulled on it, causing it to become untucked from inside his dress pants. Then, she placed her hands inside the open shirt, her palms running from his pecs up to his shoulders, pushing the clothing off of him. Kurt straightened his arms, allowing the shirt to fall from his body onto the bed. He then bit his bottom lip in response to the feeling of his wife caressing his bare chest with her hands. Angle tightened his abdominal muscles while feeling Steph trace each and every one of the abs of his six pack with her fingertips.

"You love teasing me, don't you? You know I want you so bad." muttered Angle, leaning into his wife so that their foreheads pressed together as he spoke.

"Yeah, I know you do." Steph replied smiled while her right hand traveled down to his dress pants to the proof of his arousal.

"I want you too." She then whispered before giving him a tender kiss that he quickly turned into a passionate one.

She allowed his strong advances, and it prompted Stephanie to bring her other hand back to his muscular torso. She pushed on him so that he would lay back on the bed. When Kurt was lying on his back, he smiled up at his wife who then took her hair tie from her ponytail and then sensually shook out her long brown flowing locks.

She seductively bit her bottom lip, while her hands began to fiddle with his belt and then the button and zipper of his pants. And then, just as Angle reached up and began to try and pull down her shorts, a little voice broke through their thick haze of intimacy:

"Mommy?"

The sound of Aurora's voice caused Stephanie to freeze and immediately look to the master bedroom doorway. There was her little three year old standing there rubbing one of her eyes with her stuffed otter in her other arm. How much had she seen? Hopefully she had just walked in. It was a good thing they hadn't actually started making love yet. Normally, they were very good about locking the master bedroom double doors before being intimate, but tonight, it had been so spontaneous.

"Aurora, honey, what are you doing out of bed? It's night-night time, sweetheart." Steph replied back. Both her and Kurt were quick to retreat from one another.

"I no sweep by myself. Fwipsy and me wanna sweep wif you." The child whined seemingly on the verge of tears.

Steph and Kurt both breathed a sigh of relief as it seemed that the child was not at all concerned with what her mother and step-father were doing upon her entry into the bedroom. With the child wanting to sleep in their bed, it was clear that there would be no fooling around.

"Hey Princess, you go ahead and hop into bed with Mommy." Angle told his step-daughter after sitting up and zipping and buttoning up his pants.

He didn't even wait for his wife to answer her daughter back. From what he had heard about the day, the child deserved some snuggle time with her mommy more than he did.

Aurora smiled before running over to her mommy's side of the bed. Steph picked up her daughter and brought her onto the king size bed while Kurt got to his feet.

"You okay, honey?" Steph asked noticing her husband's retreat.

"Yeah, I'm just going to go take a shower. You know..." He replied making his eyes dart down to his lower half which he was covering with his wrinkled dress shirt in the presence of the child.

"Oh, okay." She chuckled back, helping her daughter under the covers.

When Angle adjourned to the master bathroom, Stephanie took the time to change into her night shirt while Aurora got comfortable on her side of the bed.

"Mommy, why you laying on Kurt when I come in?" The three year old asked innocently without taking her head off of Stephanie's pillow.

Stephanie stood still for a moment. Her back was to her child so she had a few quick seconds to come up with an appropriate response that was suitable for her young child.

"Well, Mommy and Kurt were just playing a game, it's something grownups do when they are private time together when they are in love and married." She finally said back in before turning around to look at her daughter to see if she was buying the explanation.

"Oh..." Aurora replied before continuing on, "You come lay sweep wif me now, Mommy?"

The child had easily bought her mother's reasoning of the situation and was now ready to go to sleep in bed with her mother. Thankfully, at the age of three, Aurora Rose wasn't yet questioning her mommy's explanation of things she didn't understand.

"Yeah, scoot over, munchkin." She told her daughter approaching her side of the bed in her long t-shirt that came down to her thighs.

Aurora giggled and rolled over toward the middle of the California king so her mother could climb in. Once Steph was under the covers, the three year old quickly rolled back over to be close to her mommy over, almost accidentally slapping her in the face with her hand.

"Careful with those hands, sweetheart. You've got a fierce slap just like me." chuckled Stephanie before taking her child's hand and giving it a kiss.

"I wike you, Mommy?" She asked with a grin cocking her head to the side.

"Yes, you sure are, Princess. You're mommy's mini-me. I love you." Steph told her in a loving whisper feeling her child snuggle up close to her in the bed.

A smile couldn't help but form on Stephanie's face when she was able to hold her little girl close to her. If one good thing came out of all the drama that Paul had caused her family, it was the realization that she needed to focus more of her attention on her children, more specifically, Aurora Rose. With a new baby on the way and with all of the drama that lead to Paul's departure, her daughter needed the extra assurance that she was very much loved and safe with Mommy and Kurt.

Angle let out a deep moan that faintly echoed in the master bathroom's enclosed shower. He then sighed, his free left hand, he placed on shower wall. Kurt's glistening chest heaved as the shower jets continued to beat down on it. He smiled wide, still breathing heavy as he looked down at the shower floor. It would have been so much better if he could have taken care of that with his wife's help, but at least he had relief.

After taking a moment to rinse himself off adequately, Angle turned off the shower jets and stepped out into a towel. He patted himself dry before tightly wrapping the towel around his waist.

"Everything come out okay? That was a nice long shower." Steph commented in a whisper to her husband the moment he reemerged from their master bathroom.

Little Aurora had already fallen asleep and had not even stirred slightly when her mother spoke aloud.

"You know how much stamina I have. I wish you were in there with me though." He whispered back to her, removing his towel once he knew that the child was asleep, and started rummaging in one of his dresser draws for clean briefs.

"You and me both, Sexy ass." She replied in a stifled giggle, checking out her man's bare backside before he stepped into his cotton underwear and pulled them up.

"Jeez, all we're missing is Andy, and we'd have ourselves a family slumber party." chuckled Angle in a low voice while he carefully into his side of the bed so not to wake his stepdaughter. He then reached over and clicked off the bedside lamp.

"I know, babe. I'm sorry things got cut short between us." Steph whispered back through the darkness.

"No, don't be. The kids come first. Aurora had a hard day, she needs love from you more than I do right now." He admitted in a mutter while he extended his arm out over both Aurora and Stephanie.

Steph smiled while her head remained on her pillow as she laid on her side facing her sleeping daughter and her husband. She brought her well manicured hand to his bare arm that was draped across her before whispering back.

"Thank you, honey. I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have you."

His wife's admission prompted him to carefully move across to her side of the bed, without disturbing the sleeping three year old, in order to find her lips in the darkness.

"Ditto, Steph. I love you. We'll be okay, Aurora will get through this." He breathed after giving her a quick smooch.

"I hope so. I love you too."

* * *

Paul's hazel eyes blinked open a few times. At first he thought it was night, but then quickly realized that it was only dark because his face was pressed into a pillow. He lifted his head and found himself in his 'oh so familiar' surroundings of his childhood bedroom. How long had he slept? In an attempt to answer that question himself, he glanced over at his bedside table at his old Cartex digital clock. It was '9:23 AM'. Jesus, he had slept away yesterday.

Slowly, Levesque shifted to lay on his back and then adjusted his clothing that he had slept in. His large hand rested on his cell phone that was still clipped to his jeans. He slowly unclipped it and brought it up in front of him. Immediately, upon examining it, he saw that he had two missed calls, a voice and text message. The first thought that popped into his head was that Steph was trying to reach him. It was wishful thinking, but he couldn't help but hope that she had a bit of regret for how things went down yesterday.

His optimism quickly faded when he saw that both missed calls were from Shawn; the text message was also. It read:

_What's going on? I tried calling you twice and haven't heard back from you. I've been hearing from multiple sources that you quit WWE. Talk to me._

But he didn't want to talk to Shawn. The truth was that he felt a measure of betrayal when it came to the man who was suppose to be his best friend. According to Stephanie, it had been Michaels who had told her about him pushing Andrew off the sofa. How "Christian" that was of him. What kind of a friend would do that? He knew how much Paul wanted to get back together with Steph. As he saw it, Shawn was a Judas for ruining any shot he had at getting back with her and Aurora.

Paul placed his cell phone on his night stand before resuming the same position on his back.

Add best friend to the list of losses; His life had truly unraveled with no hope of every being put back to where it once was, and a good night sleep had not changed that fact. He was just seeing all of it with a clearer head.

Levesque's eyes scanned the many childhood memories that adorned his walls. He couldn't help but think back to how much simpler life had been when he was a young boy. He had his whole life in front of him then. His dreams of success in body building and one day having a family of his own were his motivation to work extra hard all those days during lunchtime in the high school weight room. If only he could go back and relive that time in his life again; to get a second chance at his adult life.

Paul would have fallen in love and married Stephanie all over again. That part he would never change. They would have had their precious Aurora Rose, and he would have been nothing but a faithful and loving husband. A husband that was so thankful for what he had that he had no need to find company elsewhere. And they would have had more children together, including the child that wouldn't have been lost via miscarriage. And Kurt Angle would have stayed merely a former WWE employee. He would have had no opportunity to worm his way into Steph's heart.

Levesque let out a deep sigh before slowly sitting up to hang his legs off to side of the bed. His back hunched over as he rested his face in his hands. No matter how badly he wished he could, there was no way for him to turn back time and fix his past mistakes. The truth was that he couldn't look back at the past and dwell on what he could have done differently. There was nowhere to go but forward. Paul just didn't know how he could do it.

All he could do was try and go through the motions. First came a hot shower, after which, he dressed in the forgotten clothing his mother had washed and folded in one of his dresser draws from one of his past visits over a year ago. His damp dirty blonde hair, he combed and then pulled back into a smooth, tight ponytail, like usual, without even thinking about it.

Meanwhile, Mr. and Mrs. Levesque were discussing their son over a late breakfast. They had held out eating for longer than usual with the hopes of him joining them. A early morning phone call from Lynn had them even more concerned for Paul Jr. than yesterday.

"I'm telling you, Pat, honey, something is very wrong for him to do this." Paul Sr. warned his wife.

"Oh no, do you think he's had some kind of a nervous breakdown? He seemed very upset the other day when he told me that Stephanie and her new husband were having another child." Mrs. Levesque speculated.

"Poor guy, I think he really loved her and Aurora. He probably doesn't know how he can live without them and it drove him to do this."

"My poor baby. Oh my Gosh, do you think I should go upstairs and check on him. What if he, oh I can't even say it." Patricia muttered starting to get teary eyed at the mere thought of her son not wanting to live.

"Shh, I think he's coming." Mr. Levesque quickly cautioned his wife the moment he heard footsteps coming down the nearby stairs. As an attempt to 'act natural', Paul Sr. rustled the newspaper and pretended that he was busy reading it like he usually did every morning.

"Morning, guys." Paul Jr. muttered aloud the moment he shuffled into the kitchen. His face was blank, his words sounding detached.

"Good morning, hon. There's coffee if you want it. Would you like me to make you some breakfast? I could fry you up some eggs and bacon with toast or-"

"No thanks, Mom. I'm not hungry. I'm gonna just step outside for a bit, get some fresh air." He explained while doing his best to show her a kind smile. Sadly, as he saw it, there was never going to be a reason to smile again.

His parents both watched him as he left the house through the back kitchen door that lead out to their back deck. It was clear to them that he was avoiding interaction with them. Something was plaguing him, so much so that he felt like he needed to get away from the people that cared about him most.

"We have to talk to him. I've never seen him like this." Patricia said aloud the moment her son closed the back door.

"I don't know, Pat, he's a grown man. I don't think we should press him to confide to us. If he wants to talk to us, he will. He's become so secretive. For a year we didn't see him and our granddaughter. He didn't talk to us about his divorce. What makes you think he'll be candid about leaving the business he supposedly loved so much?"

"I don't care if he's grown man. He's my son and I can see the hurt and sadness in his eyes. I have to voice my concern. I wouldn't be doing my job as a mother if I didn't."

With that being said, Mrs. Levesque ventured to her backyard where she found her son sitting on a gray boulder with his back toward the house. He was peering out at the vibrant forestry that surrounded the Levesques' property. There was something so tranquil and comforting to him when he heard the sound of the New England wind moving through the leaves of the trees. The majestic beauty almost made him forget about his irreparable sorrows.

"Sitting on your old "thinking rock", huh? As a little boy, you used to come out here and sit on it for hours after school when you had a bad day. Do you remember?" Patricia asked her son before she slowly took a seat next to him on the hard surface.

"Yeah..." He muttered folding his arms in front of his muscular torso.

His eyes caught a glimpse at the remnants of the old tree fort his father had help him build. He had to be no older than seven that summer. Dad had always made time for him when he was growing up. He had even coached his little league baseball team. They had so much fun together.

Even back then, young Paul Levesque Jr. knew that he wanted to grow up to be a father to his children like his dad was with him. He wanted to be a part of all of Aurora's childhood memories: her first day of school, her learning to ride a bike without training wheels, and to be in the front row of her ballet recitals. But he had lost the privilege to be a part of those future milestones of his daughter's life. Oh, Aurora would get to experience all of those things, but instead of doing so with him, Kurt Angle, would be the father that she remembered being there with her. With time, the past few months Levesque had spent bonding and getting to know his little girl, would fade away from her memory along with him. He would become just as much of a stranger to her as a random guy on the street; And that's what Stephanie wanted: A happily little family with Kurt while Paul suffered alone in anguish.

"Paul, honey, what is it? I can tell you are carrying around this overwhelming sadness. Does it have something to do with you leaving WWE?" Patricia asked placing a sympathetic hand on her son's broad back with the hopes of it encouraging him to open up to her.

"I left WWE because there's nothing there for me anymore..." He muttered as a single tear escaped from his hazel eye.

"What do you mean? You loved being a performer there since you were a young man. You were married into the family and have a beautiful little daughter because of it."

"Not anymore, I lost her...and Stephanie. I tried so hard to be a better man; the husband Stephanie wanted when she married me, the father that she wanted for our daughter. But my past mistakes shattered it all..." divulged Paul through his tears.

"You shouldn't blame yourself for your failed marriage to Stephanie. You made mistakes that you regret, but I'm certain she does too. It doesn't matter that you two aren't together anymore. You are still Aurora's father, you always will be." Patricia assured her son bringing her free hand to his bearded face so that she could turn his head to look at her.

"No, Mom, she doesn't regret anything, the death of our marriage was the creation of her child with Angle and their new life together that doesn't include me. She told me herself that she doesn't want to know me anymore. She's going to contest my parental rights to Aurora..."

Patricia's eyes widened, her mouth gapped open in sheer disbelief at what she had just heard. From her previous discussion with her son, she had known that there had been an existence of discord between her son and his ex-wife, but she would have never dreamed that things between them had gotten that bad. Stephanie McMahon, her former daughter-in-law, had always seemed to be a kind hearted woman who was very family-oriented. What would possibly make her not want the biological father of her child in the picture?

"I don't understand, son. Is she doing this to be spiteful? Did her new husband put her up to this?"

"No, Mom. It was my fault. After she divorced me and left with Aurora because I cheated on her, I grew insanely jealous. I couldn't stand the thought of another man moving in on my family. The reality was that Steph had moved on and started a brand new family with Angle. I couldn't take it, it consumed me and made me do things that I'm ashamed of..." cried Paul after he removed his mother's hand from his face. He didn't feel that he deserved sympathy.

"I'm sorry, I can't see you doing anything that would warrant you losing your rights as that little girl's father. There has to be some mistake or a miscommunication of some kind. Did you try and talk to Stephanie?" She then asked as she began to lovingly rub her son's back with the hand that was already there.

"Yeah, she wouldn't listen to my reasoning or my apologies. She's already made up her mind that Kurt would be a better father for our daughter."

"Well, maybe I should reach out to her. I've always had a good rapport with her so she might understand your side of things if it came from me-"

"No, Mom, don't get involved. She's already pissed off at me, I don't want you and dad to ruin any chance at ever seeing Aurora again. She and her family don't want me around her, but maybe there's still a chance for you and Dad." He told his mother, turning his body so he could face her.

He looked deep into her eyes with his own so that she knew that he meant what he said. The last thing he wanted was for his parents to be banished from their granddaughter's life, after they just saw her for the first time since right after she was born.

"Son, this is so wrong. You need to do something. Stephanie needs to know what a big mistake she's making."

"She's obviously made up her mind, Mom! She stood there without saying a God damn word as I said goodbye to my child! It's over, Mom! The McMahon-Angle family won, I lost! I have nothing left in Greenwich or in World Wrestling Entertainment!" Paul hollered lashing out in rage unexpectedly.

His words were clearly that of a hurt and defeated man, and so his mother took no offense to his screaming. She simply took hold of one of his large hands with hers as a silent reassurance that she was there to support him in any way she could.

"Mom, I'm sorry for yelling. I-I just had to get away from there. I could go on being jobbed out to every mid-carder on the roster until I retired, but I couldn't do that while I watched my own flesh and blood being brought up by another man...I can't do it." He whispered, falling quiet after his angry outburst.

Her son's words moved Patricia to tears. Her heart was breaking as she now knew the emotional burden that her youngest child had been shouldering alone for so long. He deserved to be happy and to be a part of his child's life. Slowly and lovingly, she moved forward and brought her grown son in for a hug which he accepted.

"I don't blame you for feeling that way. But Aurora Rose is your daughter too, not just Stephanie's. People make mistakes, Paul, but you have just as much of a right to be in that little girl's life as her mother does. Do not let your ex-wife tell you any different. If she takes you to court, you need to fight for your right to be her father. That little girl needs her daddy." Patricia whispered through her tears into her son's ear while hugging him.

Paul closed his eyes tight, causing a few tears to break free from the brim of his eye and quickly cascade down his face. His mother's words resonated with him, and he immediately began to ponder what she was telling him. After losing Stephanie's love and the life they had built together, did he really have it in him to fight her in a custody battle? She had enough dirt on him to convince any judge that he was unfit to retain his role as father to Aurora. Steph was the one who had a successful career as a business woman, a gorgeous home, a husband with whom she had a one year old with and another in the oven. He was the one with nothing.

And what about Aurora? What would an intense custody battle do to her? After all he had put his child through, did she need to be pulled back and forth between him and Stephanie? He loved his daughter more than his own life. Wouldn't the right and selfless thing for him to do for his daughter be to let her grow up in a complete and loving family, even if it didn't include him?

"It's not worth it, Mom. It wouldn't be fair to Aurora to put her through that. She deserves to have a complete family with a mommy and daddy that live under one roof. I can't give her that." Levesque confessed, his vocal cords tightened as he spoke what he thought was the cold and hard truth.

His words caused his mother to break her embrace and return to her neutrally seated position on the boulder. Her face contorted into a look of utter confusion while she continued to cry.

"Paul, how can you say that it isn't worth it to fight for your daughter? What would be unfair would for you to simply walk away from her. Your father and I didn't raise you to be a man who would walk out on his child. No matter how much Stephanie and her family might want her new husband to be Aurora's father, he isn't. She's your blood, son, our blood. The Levesques, are just as much her family as the McMahons are." She told him in a serious voice that sounded like she was lecturing him instead of being sympathetic.

"Now, I know you're an emotional mess right now, and I understand that. It's okay if you need to take some time and regroup to get your life straightened out. You can turn your back on that wrestling company, but not your flesh and blood." Patricia explained before she got off the large rock and began to walk away from her son without looking back at him.

After an emotional heart-to-heart talk with his mother, Levesque was once again alone in the backyard of his childhood home. He was left to ponder how exactly he was going to get his life back on track. The life he had made in Greenwich Connecticut as the famous professional wrestler, Triple H, was all he knew anymore. What on earth was he going to do now that he had walked away from everything that made him who he was?


End file.
